Macaulay Culkin's Interesting Relationship With Drugs: 'They're Like Old Friends'

Macaulay Culkin struck career gold when he led the 1990 holiday comedy “Home Alone,” a film that quickly shot him up to A-list status at the age of 10. But it didn’t last forever as the young actor, overwhelmed, took a break from the spotlight -- when the actor got involved with drugs.

Culkin, 39, doesn’t look at his drug use the same way others do, though. While his long hiatus from Hollywood led many to believe that the issues had taken over his life, with tabloids documenting his public appearances, Culkin had nicer words for it in an interview with Esquire.

“I wouldn’t be the person I am today if I hadn’t had drugs in my life at some point or another,” the actor and podcast host said. Culkin, while acknowledging that taking drugs is “stupid,” says he’s had some “illuminating experiences” and doesn’t regret it.

“So besides the occasional muscle relaxer, no, I don’t do drugs recreationally,” Culkin told the interviewer. “I do love them. They’re like old friends. But sometimes you outgrow your friends.”

The actor previously got into a bit of trouble with the law when he was arrested in Oklahoma City for having 17.3 grams of marijuana, along with some other substances.

Culkin has since, entirely on his own, cleaned up his act. But don’t ask him about how he did it because he said he’s the worst person to ask about quitting. According to Culkin, he just stopped, “and that’s not the way it works.” The actor also claimed that he never took it far enough to warrant an intervention.

Culkin never equated taking drugs to being happy. In fact, he thinks you can have fun without actually being happy, and vice versa.

“You can have it all. Just don’t confuse the two. Because it’s easy to,” Culkin said, further stating that experiencing a drug-like euphoria “doesn’t mean you’re happy. It just means you’re altered.”

“I’ve been accused of having a drug problem, but nothing could be further from the truth. Drugs are the easiest thing I’ve ever done in my life,” the actor joked to lighten the mood.

Culkin only recently decided to make a comeback, appearing in his friend Seth Green’s film “Changeland” and even auditioning for Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” The actor and fashion icon also started Bunny Ears, a comedy brand Culkin compares to Gwyneth Paltrow’s infamous Goop and comedy website ClickHole.

Culkin lives with his girlfriend Brenda Song, with whom he maintains a strong and happy relationship. Culkin casually announced that the two of them are trying to have children.