AlexandraThe Perfect Harry Lime
Joe Pesci was the actor chosen to play Harry Lime, the Wet Bandit. However, other famous actors were considered for it, such as Robert De Niro and Jon Lovitz. We agree he was the right choice for the part!
Taking Believability to the Next Level
Joe Pesci avoided Macaulay Culkin most of the time they were filming. He had a reason for it. Pesci wanted him to be scared when he saw the Wet Bandit. That was the way he found to make their acting as realistic as possible.
Culkin Got Hurt
Do you remember Harry threatening to bite Kevin’s finger when he was hooked to the door? Pesci actually left a scar on Culkin’s finger! “During one of the rehearsals, he bit me, and it broke the skin,” Culkin said. Pesci was serious about believability!
Fridge!
Joe Pesci was used to cursing before starring at Home Alone. That was due to the movies he filmed before, such as Goodfellas and Raging Bull. He had to be advised to watch his mouth so that he would not forget Home Alone was actually a family movie! He had to say “fridge” instead of the other word. It turned out great!
A Big Bloody Nose
Daniel Stern was the character chosen to represent Marv Merchants, the Wet Bandit. Most of us remember the scene when he gets shot by Kevin through the doggie door. A fun fact is that he actually got a bloody nose from it! In his words “I had to pull my head out quickly, and I clipped my big-ass nose on the door thing”.
Brave Daniel Stern
The tarantula scene was a challenge for Daniel Stern. Since he wanted it to look perfect, he decided to use a real tarantula instead of one made of rubber. A cool fact is that he did not want to scream with the tarantula on his face, just in case it could hear him! That is why he mimed it and the sound was added later.