The first two movies in the Home Alone franchise have become iconic Christmas films which many of us fondly watch during the festive period, but the same can't be said for its director.
Chris Columbus, who shot the first two of the six movies, has labeled President Donald Trump's seven-second cameo in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York as a 'curse' and wishes he could cut the scene out of the movie 33 years later.
However, the 66-year-old fears that he could face extreme retaliation if he does axe the Republican from his movie.
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“I can’t cut it,” Columbus told the San Francisco Chronicle. "If I cut it, I’ll probably be sent out of the country. I’ll be considered sort of not fit to live in the United States, so I’ll have to go back to Italy or something."
He is referring to the mass deportations of Venezuelan 'criminals' that the Trump administration ordered.
But the way in which the real-estate tycoon 'bullied' his way onto the film left a sour taste in his mouth.
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In an interview with Business Insider back in 2020, Columbus broached the topic - which he has done several times before, explaining exactly how his appearance came about.
"Like most locations in New York City, you just pay a fee and you are allowed to shoot in that location. We approached The Plaza Hotel, which Trump owned at the time, because we wanted to shoot in the lobby," The Goonies director said.
"We couldn't rebuild The Plaza on a soundstage. Trump said okay. We paid the fee, but he also said, 'The only way you can use the Plaza is if I'm in the movie'.
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"So we agreed to put him in the movie, and when we screened it for the first time the oddest thing happened - people cheered when Trump showed up on-screen. So I said to my editor, 'Leave him in the movie. It's a moment for the audience'. But he did bully his way into the movie."
Trump hit back at Columbus back in 2023 in Truth Social post, claiming the two-time Harry Potter director was using him to stay relevant.
"Nothing could be further from the truth," he wrote.
"That cameo helped make the movie a success, but if they felt bullied, or didn’t want me, why did they put me in, and keep me there, for over 30 years? Because I was, and still am, great for the movie, that’s why!
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"Just another Hollywood guy from the past looking for a quick fix of Trump publicity for himself!”
Trump's feature was actually snipped from the film after it was aired on TV in Canada back in 2019, with CBC previously explaining that he had been removed as the scene was 'not integral to the plot'.
Topics: Christmas, Donald Trump, Film and TV
Joe Yates