Actress Catherine O’Hara has passed away at her Los Angeles home after a brief illness. The 71-year-old star was known for her brilliant comic timing and unforgettable performances in projects like Home
Alone, Schitt’s Creek and Beetlejuice, among others. Her work earned her respect across generations of actors, many of whom honoured O’Hara online. Pedro Pascal, her co-star in The Last of Us, was among the first to pay tribute. Macaulay Culkin, who played her son in the first two Home Alone films, also shared his grief at her demise.
Seth Rogen recalled that watching her in Home Alone inspired him to pursue filmmaking. Michael Keaton remembered both their on-screen collaborations and their friendship, which began years before they appeared together in movies like Beetlejuice and The Paper. Dan Levy, who played her son in Schitt’s Creek, also remembered the talented actress.
Hollywood Remembers Catherine O’Hara
Sharing a picture with Catherine O’Hara from the sets of The Last of Us on Instagram, Pedro Pascal wrote, “Oh, genius to be near you. Eternally grateful. There is less light in my world, this lucky world that had you will keep you, always. Always. The one and ONLY Catherine.”
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Macaulay Culkin, sharing a nostalgic picture with his Home Alone co-star Catherine O’Hara, wrote, “Mama. I thought we had time. 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.”
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Dan Levy also remembered Catherine O’Hara with a sweet post on Instagram. Sharing a selfie of the two, he recalled, “What a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O’Hara’s brilliance for all those years. Having spent over fifty years collaborating with my Dad, Catherine was extended family before she ever played my family. It’s hard to imagine a world without her in it. I will cherish every funny memory I was fortunate enough to make with her. My heart goes out to Bo, Matthew, Luke and every member of her big, beautiful family.”
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In memory of the late actress, Beetlejuice director Tim Burton shared a photo from the sequel’s set. The picture showed him smiling with Catherine O’Hara, along with other stars Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Jenna Ortega.
The filmmaker captioned the post, “Catherine, I love you. This picture shows how much light you gave to all of us. You were a special part of my life and afterlife.”
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For Michael Keaton, Beetlejuice marked the beginning of many projects with Catherine O’Hara. They later worked together on The Paper in 1994 and Game 6 in 2005. Taking to Instagram, the veteran star wrote, “We go back before the first Beetlejuice. She’s been my pretend wife, my pretend nemesis and my real life, true friend. This one hurts. Man, am I gonna miss her. Thinking about Beau as well.”
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Catherine O’Hara’s last television role was in The Studio. In the series, she played Patty Leigh, a senior studio head who mentors Seth Rogen’s character, Matt Remick.
The actor filmmaker wrote, “Really don’t know what to say. I told O’Hara when I first met her, I thought she was the funniest person I’d ever had the pleasure of watching on screen. Home Alone was the movie that made me want to make movies. Getting to work with her was a true honour. She was hysterical, kind, intuitive, generous, she made me want to make our show good enough to be worthy of her presence in it. This is just devastating. We’re all lucky we got to live in a world with her in it.”
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Catherine O’Hara’s Family
Catherine O’Hara was survived by her husband, Bo Welch, along with their sons, Matthew and Luke, as well as her siblings, Maureen Jolley, Marcus O’Hara, Tom O’Hara, Michael O’Hara, Mary Margaret O’Hara and Patricia Wallice.
