Mom’s Home Alone
For those of us who are children of the 90s.
If I were given the power to produce a sequel in the Home Alone series, this is the movie I would make. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! This story was inspired by the genius Home Instead ads currently online. I started with one idea and then kept writing.
Act 1
35 Years after the McAllisters went to France on vacation and mistakenly left the youngest of their family home alone, a great deal has changed. Peter McAllister had passed away many years before, and all of the children have pursued careers out of town, with the notable exception of Kevin, who remains in Chicago. Kevin has built a successful home security business and has a family of his own.
Kate, Kevin’s mother, has been struggling with Parkinson’s for a few years now, and up until this year has been able to maintain the large McAllister home. Kevin has stepped up to bat to help his mom out with groceries, home maintenance, meal prep, and the occasional ride to appointments.
Kevin has become concerned about his mom and recognizes that she may want to explore home care services to support her lifestyle. Kate has always been a strong personality and adamantly refuses to look into it, and is happy to have Kevin continue to support her. Kevin insists he would be willing to pay for home care, even if it were just a check-in visit every other day. He’s already outfitted her home with a number of automatic locks, security cameras, and other deterrents. He’s also recently installed a new AI speaker system throughout the home.
While delivering a bag of groceries to his mom, Kevin bumps into his old neighbour, Old Man Marly’s granddaughter, Madison. He finds out that she’s recently returned from out of town and will be inheriting her Grandfather’s old home. They have a brief chat about the challenge of aging parents. He explains that he knows his mother is strong, but she struggles at the same time. He’s also concerned with her grasp of technology and points to her social media presence, which shows a lack of common sense.
With Christmas around the corner, Kevin has planned to take his family to Hawaii for a well-deserved holiday, but he worries about how his mother will manage while they’re away. He decides to have a serious conversation with Kate about doing a trial service plan with a home care provider while he’s away. He steels himself and texts his mom to let her know he’ll be bringing over her favourite Indian takeout for dinner.
A few minutes into the meal, Kevin nervously brings up his family's upcoming trip to Hawaii.
The discussion quickly goes south as Kate angrily tells Kevin that he has no right to suggest that she needs help and that it should be his duty to help. This raises additional issues about not having her other children around, and how she feels abandoned by them. Kevin’s frustration also boils over, and he tells her that she’s not being abandoned; he’s offering to arrange extra help. He emphasises that their current situation isn’t easy for him either. The argument mirrors the fight they had 35 years ago. “My family hates me!” screams Kate, and Kevin responds sarcastically, “Why don’t you ask Santa for a new one?” and storms out and angrily wishes her a merry Christmas.
Act 2
That evening, Kate makes her way to her room and pulls out her smartphone. She's never really used it for anything beyond sending emails or making phone calls, but she becomes curious about what she can do with apps.
“I’m perfectly fine, this is the 21st century, and there are all kinds of apps for the things I need!” She then discovers grocery delivery apps, fast-food delivery, and ride-sharing. Hilarity ensues when she downloads a dating app for those looking for mature relationships. Out of curiosity, Kate also downloads the newly developed AI companion, “O” an AI system designed in collaboration with one of Chicago’s most famous celebrities, Oprah Winfrey. She has O installed into Kevin’s system of speakers throughout the house. She also becomes intrigued by a new self-driving car she sees advertised online. The car comes pre-equipped with a number of safety and security features that can be controlled from a downloaded phone app.
“Well Kids...since you’re not here, I guess it’s time for Mom to start spending some of your inheritance!” she says to herself.
On the plane, Kevin tells his wife about the fight he had with his mother and feels guilty about leaving her Home Alone for the holidays. He’s comforted by his wife who tells him he’s been great and it is about time that the other kids step up to help. She reminds him that Kate is a formidable woman, and if he was able to take care of himself when he was 8, his mother would be more than capable of being on her own for a short while.
Back at Home, Kate has bought a new self-driving electric car designed to protect an older driver. She has become fond of food delivery services, and has also enjoyed having groceries delivered to her door. She is initially hesitant, but eventually begins talking to O, her new AI app, throughout the day, seeking counselling on what to do about her children and grandchildren who live away. O also offers to help her automate the home's security systems, and Kate grants the app access to the equipment, seamlessly integrating with Kevin’s security system. Kate amusingly also becomes very engaged on social media, but not in a good way. A lot of oversharing.
One day, she accidentally remotely drives her car into the side of the house. The minor crash shakes the wall holding the equipment that connects all her home security devices. It also shakes the power bar she uses to charge her smartphone. Kate checks her systems, and they still work, but when she leaves, the audience notices the device flickering...
Meanwhile, an online scammer has begun stalking Kate’s online activities. He’s a sleazy, but clownish over-the-top Ricky Gervais type...We’ll call him Carl. He notes her oversharing and begins planning a series of scams to gain access to her bank accounts.
The movie then continues as this scammer attempts to gain access to Kate’s accounts. Kate, however, is not naive and easily sidesteps and deflects all attempts at fraud. She even enlists O's help to identify potential threats and counter them.
Eventually, Kate gets upset enough that she decides to do something crazy. For the sake of adventure, she sets a trap for the scammer and creates a fake dating profile to try to get him arrested. She conceives a plan to have him come to her home. Her plot involves luring Carl into believing she’ll sign her estate over to him. When he arrives, after enduring carefully laid traps and obstacles, she will call the police and have him arrested. She says to herself with determination and a grin, “This is my home, and I have to protect it!”
Over in Hawaii, Kevin is concerned that he hasn’t heard from his Mom. He decides to check in on the security video system he installed for her. He’s shocked by her new shopping habits and is appalled that she’s being driven by self-driving vehicles and eating too much fast food. But then, the feed cuts out, and he can’t log into the systems...He’s annoyed more than anything, but decides to leave it for now.
Act 3
Back in Chicago, Kate goes for a walk, slips, and almost falls, but catches herself. She has a moment of fear as she realizes she’s having some issues with mobility. Madison Marley happens to be shovelling the walks and notices the slip. She quickly walks over and offers to help Kate back inside. Kate declines, but thanks Madison for being kind. The audience can see that Madison is concerned for her neighbour…
Carl arrives late at night, identifies the house and walks up the driveway. As he approaches, the lights of Kate’s electric vehicle turn on suddenly and suspiciously.
Inside the home, Kate activates the remote abilities of her new e-car to attack Carl with it’s anti-theft gadgets and devices. She observes that Carl has been temporarily blinded by the lights of her car and she asks the car to open the trunk, effectively delivering an upper cut punch to Carl, knocking him to the ground. With O's help, Kate activates her lawn sprinkler system, soaking Carl in the cold as he lies on the ground. The E-car then delivers a charge of electricity to the driveway with its anti-theft taser gun, delivering a hilarious shock to the would-be thief.
After a moment, Carl attempts to get up again beside the car. All of a sudden, The car's driver's side doors swings open, punching him in the face and knocking him down again.
This amuses Kate, who says to herself, “You know I’m Kevin McAlisters' Mom, right?!” Then she steps back and moves her plan into its next phase.
“O, I need you to use my voice and keep him distracted when he gets to the door. Can you do that?” and in a mere moment, O replies using Kate’s voice “Of course I can...You know I’m Kevin McAlisters' Mom, right?!” This annoys Kate a bit, but she is happy overall. “Yes!” she says with a fist pump. She looks over at the driveway and sees Carl once again starting to get up on his feet, this time shielding his head. Kate gets one more inspiring idea, and she shouts, “I have an idea! Car! Extend senior cane!” and instantly a cane pops out from the side of the car, nailing Carl in between the legs, and he falls over once again. The driver's side door swings open again, delivering one more blow to Carl’s face.
From Carl’s point of view, this car is the equivalent of a big electric guard dog. The car also suddenly lurches backwards as if preparing to pounce at him. It goes back a little too far and crashes once again into the wall nearest to the tech hub that powers Kevin’s systems…
Carl is furious and storms up to the house, pounding on the door. Kate begins dialing 911 on her phone, but notices the battery is almost dead and needs to be charged immediately to make the call. She asks O to keep Carl occupied. On behalf of Kate, O replies through the security camera speaker with Kates simulated voice.
“Hello, is this you, my love? I’m so sorry about the car, it’s been misbehaving lately.” Carl believes he’s speaking with the real Kate and tries to persuade her to let him in. O responds to all his messages in bizarre ways, which are typical of AI. But then the Hub system begins to spark, and O’s voice returns to sounding like Oprah Winfrey tipping Carl off that he’s been dealing with an artificial intelligence all along. He kicks the door until it finally breaks open.
But it’s too late for him, blue and red lights are flashing behind him. The police surround the house and arrest Carl. A veteran police officer notes that this incident feels like deja vu. “What’s with this house?” he says. (Larry Hankin cameo)
Kate thanks the police, but they warn her never to do anything like this again. An observant office staff member notices that she’s not well and asks if she needs help. Kate smiles but declines, then wishes everyone a Merry Christmas. She also berates Carl for trying to get one past her.
She closes the door, turns around to head to the living room to celebrate her victory. Her foot catches a corner, and Kate tumbles to the floor. She struggles to get back on her feet, but she is unable to do so. She reaches for her phone to call 911, but it's out of reach. She calls out to O for help, but the systems have been damaged, and O is no longer online. Kate is left powerless in her home. She is truly Home Alone.
In Hawaii, Kevin is now worried that his systems are offline in Chicago. He runs a diagnostic and realizes the home security system is damaged. He decides to make a call.
Kate has spent the entire night on the floor and is now frightened. But it’s daylight, and she can hear vehicles driving outside the home. She begins to call for help!
She calls once,
She calls again, now panicked and in great distress.
Finally, on the third scream she hears, “Mrs. McAllister, is that you?” It’s Madison Marley. “I’m coming in!” Kayla enters through the door, immediately runs to help Kate, and calls 911 for an ambulance.
In the next scene, Kate and Madisson are having hot chocolate together and talking about family. While shaken up, Kate will be alright with some support. Kayla encourages her and tells her that getting Parkinson's is not her fault. She’s a strong woman, and that will always be true, but she can be strong and receive support without devaluing her inner strength. Kayla helps Kate charge her phone. With the battery charged, she receives multiple text messages from Kevin, and she’s reminded that her son really does love her. At this point, Kayla tells her that Kevin called her to check on his mom's well-being.
The movie concludes with Kate and Madison at the airport welcoming Kevin and his family back in time for New Years Eve. While waiting for the younger McAlisters to come through the gate, they see a video screen showing a reporter interviewing the real Oprah Winfrey about her AI devices being used to thwart fraud.
Kevin hugs his mom and apologizes for the fight they had. Kate also apologizes, thanks him for all the support he’s given her and asks if he would set her up with some home care. She then tells him that she wants to introduce Kevin to O and her new Car.
credits roll
THE END
Notes: This is just fan fiction; I don’t own any of these characters. I’m just a fan imagining a movie I’d like to see. I believe at least 100 million other folks would probably want to see this as well. I think it would make Disney a billion dollars.