Friends Art Director Confirms Fan Theory Connecting the Series to Home Alone

Summary

• The theory that the house Monica and Chandler move into in Friends is the same as the McCallister’s house from Home Alone has received positive approval from a Friends’ art director.
• The same backing from the movie Home Alone was used to create the street view seen outside the Friends house.
• Fans who have noticed the similarity between the two houses can now say they were right all along.

There are many fan theories about shared universes and cross-overs that just seem too ridiculous to ever be given any kind of attention, but then there are some that surprise everyone by holding a little bit of truth. One of these is a theory that the house Monica and Chandler move into in Friends is actually the home of the McCallister’s from Home Alone.

The theory, which has been around for a few years, was shared again in an Instagram post by Scott Westwood, who used clips from the popular series combined with those from the 1990 movie to “prove” that the house seen in Season 10 episode entitled “The One Where Chandler Gets Caught” is the house seen in Home Alone. Having amassed hundreds of thousands of views, the video makes the point that through the windows of the house, you can see the same view as that seen from the McCallister home, and after going viral attracted a reaction from someone who could actually answer the question – Friends’ art director Daren Janes.

Friends

Release Date September 22, 1994

Seasons 10

In a response to the post, Janes confirmed that the street view seen in the show is the same one seen in Home Alone because it was the same backing used in the 1990s hit movie. He wrote:

“This is hilarious. You caught me. I was the Art Director on FRIENDS & the house was a set. The actors walked in the front door, so we saw outside. We used the backing from a company called Pacific Studios which was made for Home Alone because it looked the best through the door & windows. Great eye my friend!!!!”

So, while the house may not exactly be the grand home of the McCallisters, those with a keen eye for background details that have been claiming for years that the street outside is the Chicago residential road from Home Alone can finally say for certain that they have been right all this time.

Related: Friends: The Holiday Episodes, Ranked

The Home Alone House Is an Iconic Movie Location

20th Century Studios

As the central location of Home Alone, the McCallister house is one of those properties that has ingrained itself into the collective memories of many moviegoers over the last three decades. Standing alongside iconic movie locations from A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Amityville Horror and Ghostbusters, just a simple image of the McCallister house is enough to invoke images of burning doorknobs, blow torches and swinging paint cans.

Even now, fans have become constantly fascinated with the house, and moreover how the McCallister family could afford to live there. This led to The New York Times recently asking realtors and economists exactly how much the home of the McCallisters would be worth now, and how much it would have cost the family. As it turns out, the McCallisters would have been in the top 1% of earners in Chicago, netting an annual income of around $305,000 in 1990.

Home Alone

Release Date November 16, 1990

Rating PG

Runtime 103

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