Home Alone 2: Lost in New York may have completely rehashed the plot of its 1990 predecessor and suffered with critics as a result. However, the movie is still a fan-favorite Christmas movie, which has been proven once again as both movies have spent a while at the top of the Disney+ and Hulu streaming charts. However, there is one star of the movie whose appearance in the movie did not bring her as much joy as it has brought others.
Brenda Fricker is probably best known for playing the Pigeon Lady in Macaulay Culkin’s second outing as Kevin McCallister, in which he ends up taking a wrong flight and being once again pursued by burglars Harry and Marv, which time in New York City. In a similar beat to the original, Kevin ends up being befriended by the at-first scary homeless Pigeon Lady and all is well in the end.
In real life though, Fricker revealed that she has not had such a happy ending, as despite appearing in many movies, and even winning an Oscar for her role in the Daniel Day Lewis drama My Left Foot, the actress ended up lonely, with little cash, and even attempted suicide on more than 30 occasions. In a frank discussion last year on The Tommy Tiernan Show, Fricker explained:
“I lived off my savings while they lasted, but now I’m completely broke. But as long as I have a roof over my head and feed the dog and feed myself, I’m perfectly content. I live a very quiet life well under the radar and I drive a tiny car, own a cottage, that’s about it. Talking to the wall quite a bit, talking to the dog, writing poetry, reading books, watching television. Nothing different than anybody else does, except being alone so much can make you talk to the wall a bit more than most people.”
Brenda Fricker Revealed Her Struggles with Mental Health
It is very easy to believe that film stars have everything they want once they get a foot in the door, and Fricker had plenty of film roles to her name, as well as her Oscar win, but her story is one that proves that no matter where you come from or where you go, nothing is certain and there is always a chance that things may not be as perfect as they could be.
In the same interview, the former actress shared the struggles she has had with her mental health over the last five decades, battling depression and having attempted to take her own life on over 30 separate occasions. She candidly said:
“Just yesterday, I visited the doctor who said, ‘We’re going to put you on stronger antidepressants.’ I’m somewhat of a recluse. Choosing to stay indoors is one thing, but being told to do so makes me want to go outside”
Fricker added that she believes her life was saved thanks to one of the doctors of St Patrick’s Hospital, Dublin. She continued:
“It was tough, but there was a fantastic doctor, Anthony Clare. He saved my life. He was exceptional with me. He really pulled me out of the depths. Just an incredible mind. He understood me and reached me. I always left feeling happy after seeing him. He made me feel good.”
That was not the first time the star had addressed her depression, previously revealing exactly how much it had impacted her life. In a 2012 interview, Fricker said, “I suffered from depression for 50 years. But now I go to a therapist once a week, purely to have a conversation and to hear another human voice.” After revealing the sad truth about her multiple suicide attempts, she said, “You get so bloody tired of nobody listening to you.”
Home Alone and Home Alone 2 continue to be festive favorites on streaming, but knowing that behind the scenes the real life of the actress behind one of the franchise’s beloved characters has not been many would have hoped adds a little tinge of sadness to the legacy of the franchise.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
