Home Alone without Catherine O’Hara is almost unfathomable, but it turns out that it was nearly a reality.
It has been revealed that the Schitt’s Creek star wasn’t the first choice to play Kevin McCallister’s forgetful mum Kate in the classic 1990 Christmas film.
In an interview with Metro, cinematographer Julio Macat has told of how Big star Elizabeth Perkins was originally touted for the role.
Julio – who is now actually married to Elizabeth, after they subsequently worked together on Miracle On 34th Street in 1994 – said: “My wife, Elizabeth Perkins, had a similar situation where she worked on a movie that also was very special. You know the movie, Big? She was the girlfriend, Susan.
“We hadn’t met yet and she filmed that movie almost a year before Home Alone. [Writer] John Hughes asked her to be the Catherine O’Hara role, and she wasn’t able to do it, she was busy.”
This year marks 30 years since the release of the original Home Alone film, with Catherine recently celebrating the occasion with a special TikTok video.
She reprised her role to recreate the moment Kate realised she’s left Kevin at home again in Home Alone 2, and the result was absolutely incredible.
Catherine is currently riding a huge wave of success following her starring role in Schitt’s Creek, where she appeared as the iconic Moira Rose.
The Canadian sitcom experienced an explosion in 2020 mainly thanks to a mixture of word of mouth during lockdown and its clean sweep at the Emmys, where Catherine picked up the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series gong.
Many fans have only just discovered the link between Schitt’s Creek and Home Alone this year, leaving many of their minds blown.
Home Alone is currently available to stream on Disney+, while all six seasons of Schitt’s Creek are on Netflix.