Catherine o’hara (march four, 1954 – january 30, 2026) changed into a canadian and american’s actress, comedian, and screenwriter, whose career spanned over 50 years. She started out in comic strip and improvisational comedy in film and tv before taking dramatic roles to enlarge her career. She acquired numerous accolades including primetime emmy awards, a golden globe award, and two display actors guild awards. Films in which o’hara regarded grossed extra than $4.3 billion international. She changed into appointed to the order of canada in 2017.
O’hara began out her career in the caricature comedy collection 2d city television (1976–1984) for which she gained a primetime emmy award.She acquired acclaim acting in films together with after hours (1985), h1992).She often collaborated with christopher vacationer, performing in his mockumentary movies looking in advance to guffman (1996), incredible in show (2000), a powerful wind (2003), and in your interest eartburn (1986), beetlejuice (1988), home by myself (1990), and home on my own 2: out of area in the large apple ((2006).Her voice roles embody the movies the nightmare in advance than christmas (1993), fowl little (2005), over the hedge, monster residence (2006), wherein the wild subjects are (2009), frankenweenie (2012), elemental (2023), and the wild robot (2024).
O’hara obtained a career resurgence for her characteristic as moira rose in the cbc sitcom schitt’s creek (2015–2020), earning a primetime emmy award for splendid lead actress in a comedy collection and a golden globe award for incredible actress – television collection musical or comedy. Her portrayal of temple grandin’s aunt within the hbo film temple grandin (2010) earned an emmy nomination.
Different tv credit consist of the hbo drama collection six ft underneath (2003–2005), the netflix series a series of unlucky occasions (2017–2018), the apple television+ comedy series the studio (2025), and the hbo post-apocalyptic drama series the final of us (2025).
Early life
Catherine o’hara become born on march 4, 1954, in toronto, where she grew up. Her own family is catholic irish.[1][2] she grew up the 6th of seven youngsters, and was a more youthful sister of musician and actress mary margaret o’hara.[3] she graduated from burnhamthorpe collegiate institute in 1974, in which she became taught by destiny mississauga mayor carolyn parrish.[4][5][6]
Career
O’hara started out her comedy profession in 1974 as a cast member of the second one town in her homeland, toronto.[7] she changed into an understudy for gilda radner until radner left for saturday night stay.[8][9] two years later, this theatre troupe created the comic strip comedy show sctv, for which o’hara have become a normal performer.[8] inside the late Nineteen Seventies, she furnished voice-overs for some of cartoons, work which would retain for the duration of her career.
During a short period in the early 1980s when SCTV was in between network deals, she was hired to replace Ann Risley as Saturday Night Live was being retooled in 1981. However, she quit the show without appearing on air, choosing to go back to SCTV when the show signed on with NBC.[10][11] She was long rumoured to have left SNL due to conflicts with volatile writer Michael O’Donoghue, but O’Hara denied these claims and said she had left the show due to her dislike for living in New York City.[12]
Catherine O’Hara at the sctv day event inside the members’ living room of toronto metropolis corridor with mayor hall, 1995
Catherine O’Hara increased her profession on television in the mid-1970s.
She appeared in a small sketch role as a maid in a 1975 Wayne and Shuster special on CBC. She appeared in the 1976 television film The Rimshots, the children’s television series Coming Up Rosie for a season (1976–77), and television specials, such as Witch’s Night Out and Intergalactic Thanksgiving.
Her performances on SCTV, which began airing locally in Southern Ontario in the fall of 1976, earned her fame in Canada. The show gradually built up a national and then an international following in syndication.
Catherine O’Hara left SCTV for a time, missing the 1980–81 season, but returned to the show in time for its pickup by the NBC television network in the U.S., when it became known as SCTV Network 90. Catherine O’Hara‘s work as a writer on the show earned her an Emmy Award for outstanding writing and two Emmy Award nominations. She left SCTV again prior to its fifth season in 1982, but did return for occasional guest appearances through the show’s end in 1984.
Catherine O’Hara seemed in some of tv series and television movies and endured to work in tv till her loss of life. In the course of the 1990s, she made visitor appearances on memories from the crypt, oh baby, morton & hayes, and the larry sanders display. She acted in and directed episodes of Dream On and The Outer Limits, the revival of the 1960s series of the same name[13].
Catherine O’Hara’s megastar on canada’s walk of repute
Catherine O’Hara guest-starred on top-rated tv collection along with six feet beneath and shrink your enthusiasm.In may additionally moreover 2008, it have become added that she had signed directly to large name in the imminent abc dramedy specific behavior.[14] her role within the 2010 tv movie temple grandin earned her 3 award nominations: a primetime emmy award, a satellite tv for pc award, and a screen actors guild award.[15]
Catherine O’Hara had a successful profession in film.She made her characteristic debut in the 1980 movie double bad, which also starred her sctv co-stars john sweet, eugene levy, and joe flaherty.[16] throughout the 1980s and 1990s, o’hara seemed in lots of supporting roles, which includes martin scorsese’s after hours (1985) and heartburn (1986). She appeared as delia deetz inside the horror-comedy movie beetlejuice (1988). In 1990, o’hara had roles within the movies dick tracy and betsy’s bridal ceremony
She then starred as kate mccallister inside the blockbuster comedy movie home alone (1990) and its sequel domestic by myself 2: out of place in the huge apple (1992). Additionally in 1992, o’hara appeared inside the comedy there goes the community.[17][18]
Catherine O’Hara continued to seem in lots of films at some stage in the Nineteen Nineties and the beginning of the 21st century. In 1994, she regarded in the comedy-drama movie the paper and the western movie wyatt earp.
She received roles in four of christopher guest’s mockumentary films, three of which earned her awards and nominations: expecting guffman (1996), excellent in display (2000), a potent wind (2003), and on your attention (2006).
Her position in 1999’s the lifestyles before this gained her a genie award for satisfactory overall performance by means of an actress in a helping function.
She seemed within the 10th series of the british version of whose line is it anyway?In 2004, she regarded with jim carrey inside the black comedy movie lemony snicket’s a sequence of unfortunate activities, and in 2006, she starred with christina ricci inside the fable film penelope
Catherine O’Hara served as a voice artist in a number of animated films, includig sally within the nightmare earlier than christmas (1993), bartok the remarkable (1999), bird little (2005), over the hedge (2006), monster residence (2006), brother endure 2 (2006), in which the wild tgs are (2009), frankenweenie (2012), the addams circle of relatives (2019), extinct (2021), elemental (2023), and the wild robotic (2024).
Catherine O’Hara in May 2005oice Television Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, and a Screen Actors Guild Awa
From 2015 to 2020, o’hara co-starred as moira rose in the cbc sitcom schitt’s creek, alongside eugene levy, with whom she had previously worked on tv, in movies, and as a second metropolis solid member on degree in 1974.
Her performance in schitt’s creek earned her six canadian display awards for excellent lead actress in a comedy collection.[20] she swept the five main tv awards for the 6th and very last season, prevailing a tca award for character success in comedy.
A primetime emmy award for superb lead actress in a comedy collection, a golden globe award for nice actress – tv series musical or comedy, a critics’ chrd for first rate overall performance via a girl actor in a comedy series.[21]
She regarded as dr. Georgina orwell in the first season of the netflix black comedy drama series a series of unfortunate occasions, which premiered in 2017.[22] two of her episodes have been directed with the aid of her husband bo welch who served as production dressmaker for the collection. She became the best solid member from the 2004 film model to be re-solid inside the tv series as properly. She seemed on the revival of some other canadian cartoon comedy staple the youngsters in the hall, in its second episode as charlene, a friend of the youngsters in the corridor.[23] o’hara reprised her role as delia deetz inside the beetlejuice sequel, beetlejuice beetlejuice in 2024.[24]
In 2025, o’hara had a major role within the apple tv+ satirical comedy collection the studio. She guest-starred as gail lynden within the 2d season of the hbo publish-apocalyptic drama collection the final people.[25] she acquired primetime emmy award nominations for both roles.[26][27]
Catherine O’Hara’s film appearances contributed to a cumulative worldwide box‑office gross of more than $4.3 billion.[28]
Personal life and death
Catherine O’Hara with welch on the 2024 venice movie pageant in venice, italy
In 1983, o’hara instructed rolling stone that she was “quite much an amazing catholic lady at coronary heart”.[29] she met manufacturing fashion designer bo welch on the set of beetlejuice in 1988, and the two married in 1992.[30][31] that they had sons, born in 1994 and 1997.[32][33]
Catherine O’Hara held twin canadian and american citizenship.[34][35] she turned into made an officer of the order of canada in 2017 and turned into invested the subsequent yr.[36] for 2021, she changed into named honorary mayor of brentwood, la.[37]
Catherine O’Hara had dextrocardia with situs inversus, a condition where her coronary heart and different most important internal organs are reversed from their regular positions.[38]
On january 30, 2026, a spokesperson for the l. A. Fire branch received a call for a lady presumed to be o’hara from her home address at 4:48 a.M. Pacific fashionable time (utc–8).[39] she was transported into the sanatorium “in critical condition”.[39] o’hara died in la on the age of seventy one.[40][41][42]
