Joe Rogan and Amanda Knox’s discussion on The Joe Rogan Experience broached an unexpected subject deep into the episode’s 3-hour-plus runtime: Macaulay Culkin.
The actor, predominantly known for his starring role in the successful Home Alone franchise, became the symbol for a wider discussion around young celebrity wealth and the pressures that can bring.
Knox initially questioned whether the financial benefits outweighed the negatives. Culkin is now estranged from his father, and he clearly struggled with the widespread fame and interest in his life, retiring from acting at 14. He would return to the profession eight years later as a young adult.
Rogan, who had Culkin on his podcast as a guest in 2018, stated that he didn’t know any child stars who had transitioned into adult life without issues caused by their fame and lifestyle.
“I don’t know anybody that’s gone through that that’s ‘whole’ at the end of it. I just think that there’s also this weird thing where you become the provider for the family… And then you have this parasitic relationship that your parents have to you,” said Rogan.
“I have friends that were famous as young people and they have these very f**ked up, complicated relationships with their parents. One of my friends found out their parents stole from them. Millions of dollars,” the JRE host noted.
And then you have to grapple with that as you’re an adult. These monsters, they used you as an ATM machine and they stopped working and they became your ‘manager’. Really just pushing you out there to try to siphon money off of you,” raged Rogan.
The UFC commentator them claimed that he was fortunate in this regard and thanked the powers that be for letting fame come to him gradually.
Rogan: I was fortunate that I was drip-fed fame
Of his own relationship with fame and notoriety, Rogan has enjoyed a multifaceted ride to the top.
Rogan signed a developmental deal with Disney shortly after moving to Los Angeles in 1994. Landing main cast roles on Hardball and NewsRadio, he began his association with the UFC in 1997.
Outside of his UFC commentary and podcasting, he is best known for his five-season stint as host of Fear Factor from 2001 to 2006, as well as a successful stand-up comedy career.
Reflecting on his fame, Rogan revealed that he felt fortunate for the way that he grew into a household name in sports and entertainment. “I got fame in a slow drip. I got slow doses. Like snake venom,” laughed Rogan.
“You get a little bit of snake venom, you get one big bite from a cobra, you’re f**ked,” he continued.
“That’s what I got,” laughed Knox, seemingly referencing her wrongful conviction for murder in 2007. Knox spent four years in prison before the decision was overturned. She has since gone on to find success as a bestselling author, journalist, and activist.
“Well, you’re strong,” replied Rogan, praising his guest. “You came through it, on the other side. You’re a very durable person and it’s a trial by fire and you went through it.”
Rogan concluded the segment by relating Knox’s arrest, experienced when she was just 20, to the overarching theme of young celebrity hardship.
“Going through some s**t when you’re a kid as you’re becoming famous is different than going through hardship as a child… All my friends who are interesting all had horrible childhoods. All my most fascinating friends,” added a curious Rogan, giving in to apophenia.
