After 25 years, there are very few things that fans don’t already know about Home Alone. Chris Columbus’ holiday classic about Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) defending his home against the bumbling burglars, the Wet Bandits (Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci), is not only one of the greatest Christmas films of all time but also one of the most-watched movies ever, as families revisit it every December. Yet somehow, every year, the film’s cast and director continue to reveal behind-the-scenes secrets and debunk long-standing Home Alone myths and fan theories.

Many of the best behind-the-scenes stories involve Joe Pesci. At the time of Home Alone’s release, Pesci was best known for working with auteurs like Martin Scorsese and Sergio Leone, so the intimidating character actor wasn’t accustomed to making family films. Pesci’s menacing presence is one of the movie’s secret weapons, as Kevin seems genuinely terrified of his character, Harry. In fact, Culkin himself may have been really scared of his co-star, as Pesci took things too far in several scenes — including one where he accidentally gave Culkin an injury, that he still has evidence of to this day.

Joe Pesci Accidentally Scarred Macaulay Culkin When They Filmed Home Alone’s Finger-Biting Scene

Pesci Took Things Too Far During Home Alone’s Climax

One of the most memorable elements of Home Alone is, of course, the elaborate traps Kevin sets for the burglars trying to break into his house. The Wet Bandits are torched, feathered, and endure more pain than almost any other characters ever put on film. It’s amazing, then, that Macaulay Culkin is the only one who walked away with a permanent injury—and it happened during a seemingly innocuous scene compared to the torture his captors faced.

The moment occurs during the film’s climax. After calling the police, Kevin lures the burglars to a vacant house across the street. But for the first time in the film, Harry and Marv outsmart him, capturing him and hanging him on a door hook. Harry then menacingly lists all the things he’s going to do to poor Kevin, including, “I’m going to bite every one of these little fingers, one at a time.” But in true method fashion, Pesci actually bit down hard on Culkin’s finger—leaving him with a permanent scar.

Both Culkin and his co-star Daniel Stern have recently reflected on the infamous finger-biting incident. While on tour for A Nostalgic Night with Macaulay Culkin, Culkin hilariously recounted the aftermath of filming the scene: “I saw his face—and I’ve never, ever seen Joe Pesci actually scared… because he’s like, ‘I just bit a kid!’” (via Variety) Meanwhile, Daniel Stern shared his perspective on the event with Entertainment Tonight (via EW):

I totally forgot about that. Joe is… he’s wonderful, I love him, he’s a dear friend, but he’s a scary dude, and he was carrying it all. ‘Cause he was — we were trying in the first movie to actually be scary to start with, and then you realize we’re idiots. But there was a fear factor that set up the drama of the thing.”

It’s a great story that Culkin clearly enjoys telling, and hopefully, he doesn’t hold any resentment toward Pesci. He’s been sharing a version of the tale as far back as 2004, when he first recounted it on Late Night Wwth Conan O’Brien.

Pesci Was Also Injured Filming The Home Alone Movies — His “Serious Burns” Explained

Pesci Burned His Head While Doing His Own Stunts For Home Alone 2: Lost In New York

Macaulay Culkin wasn’t the only one who got hurt while making the Home Alone films. While shooting the sequel, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Joe Pesci injured his head during the scene where Harry’s hat is set on fire. Although Pesci had a stuntman for the film, he decided to perform this particular stunt himself (via People):

“In addition to the expected bumps, bruises, and general pains that you would ᴀssociate with that particular type of physical humor, I did sustain serious burns to the top of my head during the scene where Harry’s hat is set on fire,

It’s surprising that this was the scene where Pesci sustained an injury, considering his character endured a similar fate in the original Home Alone, when Harry gets his head torched by a blowtorch after sticking it through a doggie door. But just like Culkin’s injury, unexpected things happen on film sets like Home Alone‘s all the time. Fortunately, both Culkin and Pesci can now look back on these incidents and laugh about them years later.