Chris Columbus Quits Christmas Vacation: Chevy Chase's On-Set Antics & The Rise of Home Alone

Chris Columbus Reveals Chevy Chase Conflict Leading to 'Christmas Vacation' Exit and 'Home Alone' Directing Role

Director Chris Columbus who is well known for Home Alone was originally set to direct another holiday classic National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Columbus explains recent Vanity Fair interview stating a series of unpleasant experiences with actor Chevy Chase directly influenced his choice to exit that 1989 production despite his clear love for directing and writing films with popular appeal. Chris Columbus is known for family friendly films with many popular titles.

Chris Columbus Details His Difficult Interactions with Chevy Chase Prompting Abrupt 'Christmas Vacation' Departure

Columbus claims that he immediately changed his mind when meeting Chevy Chase after having already started working on Christmas Vacation in 1989 because Chase behaved poorly . Columbus even while needing a directing project realized that he could not continue work given Chevy’s personality and the way he interacted. Columbus prior to National Lampoons' was a celebrated talent that already produced screenplays like Gremlins and The Goonies directed film like Adventures in Babysitting proving his ability in popular media at time and giving insight into why his experiences with Chase was shocking to him. The script for Christmas Vacation had been sent to Columbus by John Hughes however after experiencing difficulties Columbus said he must pull out directing the movie in its current state.

Bizarre Meetings and Unsettling Interactions With Chevy Chase Led to Frustration

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Columbus details that his two meetings with the Saturday Night Live performer included awkward conversational exchanges. During his first solo meeting with Chevy Chase he explains discussing how he wanted to direct the movie. After forty minutes Chevy Chase questioned Columbus's role as director. He stated he "thought you were a drummer." Columbus did not find humor in statement and further details the experience to prove the strange dynamic that he was subjected to that he still finds bizarre. Sean Zanni took pictures at some Getty event related to the SNL cast highlighting the longevity of these personalities.

Vanity Fair magazine noted that Chase potentially referenced a jazz drummer also named Chris Columbus however this specific information and context was absent from Chase during his conversations with Chris Columbus that was the subject of the discussion in Vanity Fair. After this unsettling experience Columbus again had second meeting with Chase and Hughes and Hughes focused attention on discussion about topics other than movie which he was supposed to produce. Hughes and Chevy engaged for two hours completely ignoring him causing Chris to withdraw and prioritize his well-being over this working relationship with the celebrity and the specific film.

'Home Alone' Emerges After Chris Columbus Exits 'Christmas Vacation' Providing a Superior Personal Creative Path

Columbus decided that he would prefer to focus on his writing and his future path instead of this problematic situation following his meeting with Chevy Chase . He did contact Hughes about these difficulties resulting in Hughes providing him script of what eventually becomes Home Alone . Home Alone appealed far more than previous opportunity as he found creative vision that he had for this project while avoiding Chase creating much better result and directing the film into Christmas Classic. After leaving the National Lampoon's movie Columbus began directing Home Alone which came out one year later showing his clear understanding and preference for the project and setting in action one of Christmas films most people enjoy globally.

Chevy Chase Responds To Allegations and Declares He Does Not Care About Being Labeled "Difficult"

Following reports on difficult behavior the actor Chevy Chase provided comments saying he does not “give a crap” and explaining he likes “who I am” with no regard for what his past colleagues had said about him. Chevy Chase responded with strong views and perspectives regarding comments from former coworkers about on set behavior and personality . Chevy Chase's perspective from the interview is quite interesting due to his non-apologetic nature showing no interest in accommodating outside views regarding on set and working behavior.

Jeremiah S. Chechik Successfully Takes Over 'Christmas Vacation' Despite Its Box Office Success

Following Columbus exit director Jeremiah S. Chechik assumed control of the project releasing Christmas Vacation in December 1989 with 73 million dollars at box office and becoming a yearly traditional classic. Home Alone following year grossed 476 million dollars at box office demonstrating the importance and value for studio level support and popular viewership . Both films from those respective years became successful as major hits but remain quite distinct due to their different directors showing differences in the art behind film. The enduring popularity of Christmas Vacation plus Home Alone proves their appeal as a beloved viewing experience during yearly holiday seasons for decades.

Chris Columbus Reflects On Film Career Spanning Home Alone to Harry Potter

Chris Columbus who is 66 reflected on various parts of his life in an interview published December 23 in Vanity Fair while he openly mentioned details on events and experiences concerning the Christmas Vacation . Columbus stated in detail how he chose to work on Home Alone in order to specifically avoid interactions with Chevy Chase during the directing phase. This particular choice directly resulted in two decades of high popularity with both Christmas Vacation and Home Alone movies . Both Chris Columbus Home Alone and Harry Potter movies have all had immense reach into popular culture influencing generations of film fans over past decades.

Chris Columbus Discusses Specific Interactions with Chevy Chase During Production of 'Christmas Vacation'

Chris Columbus shared details about very unpleasant interactions while developing creative vision for Christmas Vacation stating that these initial communications had impacted him directly and that he considered his interactions "bizarre" and surreal which was his reasoning to stop participation and production . Columbus described first encounter with Chase detailing how Chevy's complete silence followed by his bizarre comment made it impossible for further collaboration because the exchange seemed deliberately disruptive and confusing. He later said that in an additional meeting Chase and John Hughes only had discussions about other topics and no topics related to Christmas Vacation creating a feeling of immense disrespect.

'Home Alone' Became A Career Highlight For Director Chris Columbus and Remains Beloved Today

After his professional exit from the National Lampoon's film Columbus described feeling much more aligned to creative vision in Home Alone which was gifted by Hughes. The movie allowed opportunity for self expression and vision while avoiding challenging behaviors that Chris encountered previously with Chase. Home Alone remains important part of Columbus legacy and film's place in Christmas traditions as seen with Home Alone 2 later in Columbus movie producing history .