This Ex Child Star & Hands-On Dad Was a Money-Making Machine for His Abusive Father Who Hid His Millions from Him

• The star in the cover picture was a former child star who made millions for his abusive father.
• The Hollywood icon opened up about the tumultuous and conflicting relationship he and his dad shared.
• He grew up to find love and become a hands-on father to his two children.

The iconic actor, 43, in the cover photo, was a former child star who came from very humble beginnings and a complex family environment. He grew up as one of seven children in a compact one-bedroom apartment on Manhattan's Upper East Side.

Their 94th Street and Second Avenue home saw all seven kids sharing bunk beds. The icon described his childhood home as one lengthy hallway with only doorways to separate the space into compartments.

The 43-year-old's mother worked as a telephone operator while his father had secured a job in a Catholic church. While recalling the moments he accompanied his dad to work and assist him, he observed the behind-the-scenes processes. The celebrity admitted the experience somewhat tainted his perspective on religion.

During the course of his childhood, the star's dad, who used to be an actor himself, pushed him into the entertainment industry at a young age. In fact, the former child actor opened up about how his dad would use intimidation and harsh tactics to get him to pursue what Tinseltown had to offer. He revealed:

"...My father was always, you know, abusive, but it didn't get really, really, really bad until later on."

Growing up, the star's dad enrolled him in classical ballet since his family were neighbors with a stage manager named Susan Selig, who worked at Ensemble Studio Theatre. After connections were made, the young boy's dad signed him up for the theatre group. Before 1988 rolled around, and prior to the famous boy scoring his big break, he and his family struggled severely to make ends meet.

They were so poor that sometimes the theatre kid had to crawl underneath the bleachers to search for some loose change that would fall out of the audience's pockets. However, their luck turned around when the little boy turned eight and got cast in "Rocket Gibraltar" alongside soon-to-be big names in New York theatre.

He hit the big time again with a new role in the comedy "Uncle Buck." At this time, he started gaining popularity and began learning the ins and outs, hard truths, and difficult sacrifices concerning show business, such as being away from home for three months as an eight-year-old.

The child star who skyrocketed to fame after starring in "Uncle Buck," and "Rocket Gibraltar," is none other than Hollywood legend Macaulay Culkin. Throughout his childhood, Macaulay reached an unparalleled level of fame, especially in 1990, with the release of the remarkably popular classic, "Home Alone."

Thanks to his incredible talents, the movie quickly garnered a top-three spot as one of the most successful films, next to "Star Wars" and "E.T." As a result of his unprecedented stardom, Macaulay began staying home frequently and would watch a lot of TV during his days off.

However, that did not deter fans from pursuing any glimpse or interaction they could get with him the more famous he became. Once Macaulay started booking project after project, his father, Kit Culkin, quit his job to become his son's manager, splitting the 15% managerial profit with Macaulay's mom, Patricia Brentrup.

While traveling extensively for gigs and filming on multiple locations, Kit would continuously push his son to pursue job after job, despite Macaulay expressing his fatigue and resentment to his dad on different occasions. Of his feelings toward being forced to continue on in show business, Macaulay expressed:

"It started feeling like a chore. I started vocalizing that and not being heard: I was saying, 'I wanna go to school—I haven't done a full year of school since first grade.' "

Although he also mentioned initially enjoying his show business experience, citing his skills and desire for attention, ultimately, Kit made his son into a money-making machine with very little, if any, say over his decisions. According to the "My Girl" talent, Kit began being mean to him just because he could.

He also wanted to present the image of him being the one in control of all his son's affairs, so he would do things like make Macaulay sleep on the couch instead of a bed just to throw his weight around. The former child actor even said Kit used to physically abuse either him, one of his siblings, or his mom at the time.

Though Kit would manage to garner $8 million per production his son played a role in, the more his son rose to fame, the more his image as a horrible stage parent became recognized by the public. Macaulay acknowledged that, on some level, he knew his dad was just trying to do the best for his family, but he also recognized that Kit mostly had ulterior motives.

Kit's ulterior motives reared their ugly heads when he and Macaulay's mother got into a custody battle over their then-teenage son and their other kids. While earning millions as a child, Macaulay never knew how much he was worth, as his father would hide his millions from him by keeping away newspapers that exposed such information about him.

After Patricia filed a custody lawsuit against Kit, Macaulay discovered he was worth $50 million. As the battle continued in court, Macaulay decided to take control of his finances, as he was done being in the middle of the dispute between his parents, who weren't legally married.

At the time, Patricia struggled to pay rent due to the costly lawyer fees. To avoid making the situation messy, her son took both his parents' names off his trust fund and appointed an executor to manage his finances.

When the last day of the trial came, Kit was nowhere to be found, and reportedly, Macaulay hadn't seen or spoken to him since that day. Kit left their family, taking Macaulay's famous memorabilia he had collected during his childhood stardom days with him.

Regarding Brenda's partner's perspective on fatherhood, Macaulay has not been left hardened by what his dad made him endure.

Far from being devastated about his father's departure, Macaulay spoke about what a great time he had during his high school years after Kit left. The celebrated actor revealed he finally had the chance to do the things he always wanted to do. He stated:

"For now, my opinion is, the farther away he is, the better when it comes to, like, everything."

Three years ago, the now-grown man whose father left him and his family sat down for a photoshoot and interview. The event came after Macaulay stepped back from the spotlight.

Macaulay somewhat halted his career for a bit to the point that even the media outlet that published the story noted his absence or, rather, the public's perception of him being gone. On this matter, the star explained:

"...up until the last year or two, I haven't really put myself out there at all..."

In fact, when it comes to his recent life, home with his cats, other animals, and his partner, Brenda Song, 35, is where the heart is. Macaulay and Brenda initially met on the set of a movie in Thailand.

The couple's relationship is one to gush over, with their charming lived-in house where Macaulay painted a yellow brick road leading up to its entrance and their matching pajamas. While talking about her beau and their relationship, Brenda swooned:

"People don't realize how incredibly kind and loyal and sweet and smart he is...He's worked really hard to be the person he is."

Last year, Brenda and her incredibly sweet partner welcomed a baby boy in Los Angeles on a Monday afternoon. The couple, who got engaged last year, named their son after Macaulay's late sister and of his arrival, announced:

"We're overjoyed."

Naturally, as private people, particularly when it comes to their children when their second baby was born earlier this year, the parents didn't divulge too much information. However, doting dad Macaulay gave a rare glimpse into their lives as parents when he shared a picture of him and Song standing next to Elmo during their eldest son's birthday celebration.

Last year, the "Dollface" actress also shared a few words about how she and Macaulay raise their boys. Concerning this, she said:

"My boyfriend and I are very hands-on. We don't have a nanny.."

Regarding Brenda's partner's perspective on fatherhood, Macaulay has not been left hardened by what his dad made him endure.

Instead of resenting him, the doting dad of two said that Kit taught him what not to do as a father himself, and thus, he remains careful not to follow Kit's parenting style when raising his boys.