Catherine O’Hara, beloved for her Emmy and Golden Globe-award-winning portrayal of Moira Rose in “Schitt’s Creek” and scene-stealing roles in “Home Alone,” “Best in Show” and “Beetlejuice,” has died. She was 71.
Creative Artists Agency confirmed O’Hara’s death in a statement, which did not cite a cause but said she died after a brief illness.
Over the course of her five-decade career, the Toronto-born O’Hara played parts across the dramatic and comedy spectrum. But she shone brightest in works that foregrounded her wit. A veteran of Canada’s Second City sketch troupe, O’Hara was part of the founding ensemble of “SCTV” in 1976, a cast that included her eventual “Schitt’s Creek” co-star Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Joe Flaherty, Dave Thomas, Harold Ramis and John Candy. She earned the first of her two Emmys in 1982 for her writing on the show, which at that time was known as “SCTV Network 90” and aired on NBC.
But as the satirically pompous, high-strung Moira Rose, the uncomfortably broke former soap opera queen and matriarch of the hit Canadian sitcom “Schitt’s Creek,” O’Hara achieved universal acclaim and endless memeability. Her performance earned O’Hara a second Emmy in 2020 for outstanding lead actress in a comedy, in addition to a Golden Globe and an Actor Award. More recently, she was nominated for her work in 2025’s best comedy Emmy winner, “The Studio.”
Before that, generations of moviegoers and TV viewers came to know her as Lydia Deetz’s histrionic stepmother, Delia, a terrible artist to top all terrible artists, in 1988’s Tim Burton classic “Beetlejuice” and its 2024 sequel “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.” She was relatively more subdued as Kevin McCallister’s mother, Kate, in 1990’s “Home Alone” and 1992’s “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.”
Later work in Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries capitalized on her improvisational flexibility, including in 1996’s “Waiting for Guffman,” 2003’s “A Mighty Wind,” and 2006’s “For Your Consideration,” in addition to 2000’s “Best in Show.”
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O’Hara also leaves an extensive body of voice work, including that of Sally, the romantic co-lead of Burton’s 1993 classic “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” and more recently the part of Brook Ripple in the 2023 Pixar movie “Elemental.” She also nailed her poignant portrayal of a grieving, angry therapist in the second season of “The Last of Us.”
Shortly after the news of her death went public O’Hara’s co-stars shared tributes on social media.
“Oh, genius to be near you. Eternally grateful,” “Last of Us” star Pedro Pascal posted on Instagram. “There is less light in my world, this lucky world that had you, will keep you, always. Always. The one and ONLY Catherine O’Hara.”
“Home Alone” star Macaulay Culkin also shared a heartfelt remembrance in an Instagram post. “Mama. I thought we had time,” he wrote. “I wanted more. I wanted to sit in a chair next to you. I heard you but I had so much more to say. I love you. I’ll see you later.”
Ultimately, O’Hara viewed her family as her greatest legacy; in 2024, when a TMZ photographer asked which role she’d like to be remembered for, O’Hara responded, “mother to my children.” She is survived by her husband, production designer Bo Welch, and their sons, Luke and Matthew.
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