Biography
Often referred to as "the littlest Culkin," Rory Culkin came to acting with a family reputation that stands in inverse proportion to his diminutive stature. Born in 1989, as the youngest child of the infamously fractious Kit Culkin and Patricia Bentrup, Rory was only a year old when his eldest brother, Macaulay, found an almost obscene degree of fame and fortune thanks to his starring role in
Chris Columbus' blockbuster
Home Alone. Most of Rory's earliest screen appearances came courtesy of his resemblance to his famous brother; fans of
The Good Son (1993) may recall his appearance as a younger version of Richard, Macaulay's bad seed alter ego. Likewise, Rory also played the more childlike version of his brother's title character in
Richie Rich. Unfortunately, any talent the wee Culkin may have exhibited was, for a number of years, largely obscured by his family's various misfortunes. Following the bitter and widely publicized breakup of his parents, Culkin also had to endure the unfavorable publicity surrounding Macaulay's career burnout and a 1998 fire in his family's Manhattan apartment. In 2000, he finally earned recognition as a talented young actor, thanks to his role as
Laura Linney's wry, observant son in
Kenneth Lonergan's much-acclaimed directorial debut
You Can Count on Me, causing both critics and audiences to remark that perhaps big screen bankability had not been limited solely to Culkin the Eldest. After a subsequent appearance in Showtime's made-for-cable film
Off Season (2001), Culkin once again appeared as a younger incarnation of an older sibling, this time Kieran, in the art-house comedy
Igby Goes Down (2002). As his first major feature role independent of his siblings, Rory appeared as alongside Mel Gibson and
Joaquin Phoenix in M. Night Shyamalan's rural alien invasion thriller
Signs. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide