Macaulay, Britney and other child stars who took their own parents to court

He played Kevin McCallister, the little boy who was forgotten during the Christmas holiday in the movie 'Home Alone.' It would make Macaulay Culkin's family a lot of money.

When his parents separated, Macaulay was a child with a lot of money in his trust fund: some 15 to 20 million dollars. Unsurprisingly, his mother and father fought over his custody.

In response, and with the help of a lawyer, Macaulay managed to get his parents's names out of his trust fund. He had an executor handle his finances until he came of age. He talked openly about the process with Esquire magazine.

Surely many remember that catchy song from the 80s: 'I Think We're Alone Now.' Tiffany Darwish, the singer, instantly rose to fame thanks to it. It wasn't all happiness in her life though. At age 16, she filed for emancipation from her parents.

According to her statements, recorded in the Los Angeles Times, she came to feel that her parents controlled her life and finances so much that she fled from home. Finally, however, Tiffany withdrew the suit and reached an agreement with her mother to be her legal guardian until she turned 18.

Drew Barrymore started appearing on the screen when she was only 11 months old. She became famous at age 7 with her role as Gertie in 'E.T. The Extraterrestrial' in 1982. By the time she was 14, the young star sued for emancipation from her parents.

In her memoir, ‘Wildflower,' Barrymore explains that this had to do with the bad influence her parents had on her. As she recalls, her mom "lost credibility as a mother by taking me to Studio 54 (so wrong, but so fun) instead of school. And I was out of control due to working since I was 11 months old and what that had done to my childhood, which made me grow up too fast." The judge agreed that it was an unhealthy lifestyle and granted the emancipation.

Britney Spears became famous as one of the Mouseketeers in Disney's Mickey Mouse Club. After her start on TV, she began singing and immediately had a big hit on her hands: '...Baby One More Time' (1998).

After her divorce from Kevin Federline, Britney Spears appeared to develop some mental health issues. Therefore, her parents decided to place the then-adult star under a conservatorship. Their control over her finances would go on for years, as several media and Britney's own memoirs recount. She had no control over her life as she continued to record albums and perform profitable shows such as her Las Vegas residency.

After years under the conservatorship, Britney took her father to court and won control of her life in 2021. "I want to be able to get married and have a baby," the singer, who was then in her thirties, told the judge. The controversial conservatorship ended after 13 years.

In 'Modern Family,' she has a loving relationship with her parents, but unfortunately, it's not that way in real life. The actress was placed under the guardianship of her sister, Shanelle Gray after she accused her mother of physical and emotional abuse at the age of 14.

In 2015, when she was 17 years old and after three years of fighting in court, Ariel Winter was officially emancipated from her mother. She openly spoke to media like ABC News about the emotional impact her family situation had on her as a teenager. She also said that the support of her 'Modern Family' co-stars helped her through many difficult times.

Jena Malone, a familiar face of the 90s, appeared in movies like 'Donnie Darko' and 'Contact.' The money she made with the productions caused trouble between her and her mother, the LA Times reported.

At the age of 14, Jena sued her mother for wasting nearly $1 million of her money as well as evading taxes. The actress won the lawsuit and was legally emancipated in 2000.

Billy Unger, star of 'Lab Rats' on the Disney Channel, struggled with the involvement of his father in his life and career. Unger sr. had appointed himself as Billy's talent manager and business consultant.

In 2015, when Billy was 19, he sued his father for breach of contract, alleging that he had used his income for personal gain. Unger claimed that most of his income had gone towards his father in the form of commissions and that his dad had used the money to pay for his girlfriend's apartment.

Corey Feldman played cute characters in films like 'Stand by Me,' 'The Goonies,' and 'Gremlins.' By the time he was a teenager, Corey was a millionaire thanks to these hit movies. Unfortunately, his mother had did not have the best intentions with the actor's bank account, as he later revealed in his memoir 'Coreyography.'

In 1986, Corey discovered that his mother had spent large amounts of her income, leaving him only $40,000 in the bank. He started a trend among young Hollywood stars: the 'Emancipation Proclamation in Hollywood.' By the time he was 15, Corey was emancipated from his parents.

Thanks to the character Blair Waldorf on the hit series 'Gossip Girl,' Leighton Meester became a teen idol. However, in another unfortunate case of money spoiling family relationships, Meester had to take her mother to court.

In 2012, Meester had to face her mother Constance in court for squandering all her savings on plastic surgeries and other cosmetic procedures. Leighton had intended to save that money to pay for the care of her younger brother who suffered from serious medical problems.

When she played Marissa Cooper on 'The O.C.', Mischa Barton (right in the photo) was all set up for a glamorous career. Ironically though, the on-screen dysfunctional family drama she and her colleagues portrayed was not far from the reality of her own family.

Mischa discovered that her mother and manager, Nuala Barton, had been stealing millions from her for years. In 2015, she sued her mom, but she dropped the lawsuit a year later due to mental health issues, media such as People magazine reported.

Disney watchers will remember Zeke Baylor, played by Chris Warren Jr. in the channel's series 'High School Musical.' Sadly, Warren lived a story similar to that of the other child stars in this gallery.

In 2013, he sued his parents for embezzlement of his income in court. The judge ruled in favor of Chris Warren Jr. and his parents had to pay him back $330,000.

She was labeled a 'musical prodigy' at the beginning of her young country music career. Her success led to her bank accounts overflowing with money at a very young age, and that's where the trouble began for LeAnn Rimes.

LeAnn's father, Wilbur, was allegedly stealing money from the star along with his co-manager, Lyle Walker. The theft was said to involve a whopping 8 million dollars, so at 17 years old LeAnn had to go to court alongside her mother to sue her dad. Luckily, they managed to solve the issue and Rimes reconciled with her father in 2005.