How Many Siblings Does Kieran Culkin Have? It’s More Than You May Think

Kieran Culkin is an electric force in the HBO series Succession, generating buzz every season with the oily humor he brings to each episode. As many know, Kieran isn’t the only famous Culkin. His brother Macaulay Culkin has also been in the public eye since he was a child. Beyond these two, though, there are a handful of other Culkin siblings. Many of them have also joined the family business.

Kieran Culkin and his family lived in New York

In the early years of his life, Kieran and his family lived in a railroad apartment in Manhattan. Kieran told Vanity Fair that the space was “barely suitable for a couple.” By contrast, the family had nine people: two adults and seven children.

“It was just a hallway, and there were no separating doors, except for the bathroom, which didn’t have a lock,” he said. “They raised seven kids in that apartment — for years! They just kept bringing babies home to this little space.”

His mother, Patricia Brentrup, worked to hold the family together and his father, Kit, managed Macaulay’s explosive acting career. According to Kieran, though, Kit was overly demanding and alienated the rest of the family. 

Kieran and Macaulay Culkin aren’t the only siblings in showbusiness

Of the seven Culkin siblings, five made their way into the entertainment industry in one way or another. 

“My parents’ friends were running a little theater, the Light Opera of Manhattan, and whenever a production needed a kid, they were like, ‘What age and what gender? We’ve got seven of them right over here,’” Kieran said.

Macaulay was the first, brightest star. His roles in the Home Alone movies rocketed him to international fame when he was just 10 years old. Though he has mostly taken a step back from acting, he still appears in projects from time to time, including a recent appearance in American Horror Story.

Rory Culkin also rose to prominence as a child with roles in Richie Rich and Signs. Like Kieran, his career has recently heated up, with roles in the series Waco and City on a Hill.

Quinn Culkin only worked as a child, where she did voice acting in the 1991 series Wish Kid. Since then, she’s stepped away from the spotlight entirely. Similarly, Christian Culkin appeared in one 1994 film before switching careers. The oldest Culkin brother, Shane, has acted on stage, though not on screen.

The only Culkin sibling to live a life entirely out of the spotlight was Dakota Culkin. The family’s eldest sister tragically died in 2008 after a car struck her. 

Many of the Culkin siblings have appeared in movies together

Throughout their long careers in show business, many of the Culkin siblings have appeared in projects together. Kieran, for example, played Macaulay’s younger, soda-guzzling cousin in Home Alone. Quinn also acted alongside Macaulay in the thriller The Good Son. In 2002, Rory even played a younger version of Kieran in the film Igby Goes Down.

Growing up in such an intense spotlight has given many of the Culkins a nuanced view of fame. 

“[Fame is] not a nice thing. I think well-adjusted, smart people that experience it first- or secondhand would not pursue it,” Kieran said. “I’ll totally take personal happiness over success, absolutely. If I’m miserable, then what’s the f—ing point?”