Kieran Culkin has had a meteoric rise to fame in recent years. As one of the Culkin siblings, he has been acting for decades, making his debut playing Fuller in Home Alone back in 1990. Throughout that decade, he continued on pursuing acting as a child star, with roles in projects such as Father of the Bride and The Cider House Rules. Culkin’s career took a positive turn when he made his debut as Roman Roy on the HBO series Succession, which earned him an Emmy for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2023.
Culkin continued his positive career streak on March 2 when he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his part in A Real Pain. The Jesse Eisenberg-directed movie received positive reviews following its release, with particular praise going to Culkin’s supporting role. The film also received praise for other elements, and was recognized with a Best Original Screenplay nomination (which it lost to Anora). Many considered it to be snubbed for Best Picture. Now, Culkin has provided background about his inspiration for his role as Benji.
Culkin Based His A Real Pain Performance Off Of Someone He Knew
But He Didn’t Even Realize He Was Doing It
Culkin reveals his Oscar-winning turn in A Real Pain came with an unexpected twist. Culkin starred in Jesse Eisenberg’s critically acclaimed dramedy, which follows cousins Benji and David Kaplan reconnecting with their familial roots—and each other—while backpacking through Poland. Culkin has now won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, and last night’s Spirit Award, all for his performance as Benji, the brash and unpredictable counterpart to Eisenberg’s David. Follow all of ScreenRant’s Oscars coverage as the complete list of 2025 Oscars winners is revealed.
ScreenRant‘s Tatiana Hullender is in the winners’ press room at the 2025 Oscars, where Culkin revealed Benji was unknowingly modeled on someone in his real life. Although he did not reveal who it was, his wife “said his name in [his] ear” when watching the film together in theaters. Read what he had to say below:
It definitely, it felt different immediately. The script was incredibly tight that I didn’t want to rehearse it or talk about it or anything. It just felt like was the first time I ever read something and went, “I fully understand this guy. I don’t even want to read again.” I wanted to show up on the day and go, “What scene are we doing? Oh yes, this one,” and the words [would get] here really quickly, because they were so well-written.
That was a fun new approach, and it felt like I knew who this guy was, but I couldn’t identify it. I didn’t want to identify it, because right away, while reading it, I’m like, “I know who this guy is. I’m just gonna leave it and just do it.” It wasn’t until almost a year later, when I watched it that I was like, “Oh, my God, I know someone exactly like this. I didn’t realize I was doing that.” The moment I realized that my wife leaned over in the theater [and] said his name in my ear, and I was like, “You’re right. I’m totally doing him, and I didn’t even know!”
That kind of unusual experience? I’ve never had that before.
What Kieran Culkin’s Inspiration Behind Benji Means
Culkin’s Performance Feels Too Real For A Reason
Actors often draw from real life to shape their performances, but in Culkin’s case, the inspiration was an entirely subconscious mimicry of someone he knew. This revelation highlights just how naturally he inhabited the grief-stricken role, making Benji feel like a fully realized person. ScreenRant‘s Mae Abdulbaki’s review of A Real Pain praised the actor’s raw portrayal of the emotionally volatile Kaplan cousin, saying:
Kieran Culkin provides most of the moments of levity, and he’s great at playing a chaotic but wounded man, the brightness behind his eyes dimmed because of the hurt he doesn’t express.
Having already proven his dramatic and comedic prowess with HBO’s Succession playing Roman Roy, a role that won him an Emmy, two Critics Choice Awards and a Golden Globe, Culkin continues to bring a heartfelt affinity to his sardonic and often obscene characters. The actor nonetheless faced stiff competition in the Best Supporting Actor category. At the 2025 Oscars, he was up against Yura Borisov (Anora), Edward Norton (A Complete Unknown), Guy Pearce (The Brutalist), and his Succession co-star Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice). With this win, Culkin proves that his niche is one that continues to captivate.
Our Take On Kieran Culkin’s Inspiration For Benji
Will Culkin Reveal His Mystery Muse?
Culkin delivers his signature range of emotion and cynical wit to his performance, making Benji both unpredictable and heartbreakingly real. His revelation raises an intriguing question—who was he unknowingly channeling in A Real Pain? If his wife instantly recognized the person, it must be someone they both know well, perhaps a close friend, a family member, or even another actor. Whoever inspired Benji, they played an unintentional role in Culkin’s well-earned Oscar win.
Related
A Real Pain Ending Explained: Where Benji & David’s Relationship Stands
Jesse Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin’s critically acclaimed and thought-provoking 2024 movie A Real Pain ends on a largely ambiguous note.
Given the sensitive nature of the role, it seems unlikely that Culkin will further reveal the identity of this person. The individual is also probably not the only thing that the actor was accessing in A Real Pain. His frenetic energy evokes Succession‘s Roman, further highlighting Culkin’s high aptitude for playing roles that straddle comedy and drama. This ultimately led to a great performance as Benji, which gave A Real Pain its only Oscar win.
What’s Kieran Culkin Doing Next?
Now that A Real Pain‘s award season has come to an end and Succession has wrapped up its run, Culkin is entering an interesting stage of his career. He doesn’t have many film and television projects currently lined up beyond Andy Serkis’ Animal Farm adaptation, but that doesn’t mean he’s slowing down.
Animal Farm is currently expected to be released this year.
In the coming weeks, Culkin will return to Broadway for a new production of Glengarry Glen Ross, starring alongside Bob Odenkirk and Bill Burr. The play will likely give him the chance to again push his range and try something new, indicating his career post-A Real Pain is only going to get more exciting from this point on. There’s a chance he may become more selective with the projects he chooses, but he will no doubt continue to pick exciting and compelling characters to portray.
A Real Pain
6/10
- Release Date
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January 20, 2024
- Runtime
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90 Minutes
- Director
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Jesse Eisenberg
- Writers
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Jesse Eisenberg
