Hollywood and fans are in mourning as ABC News reports that comedienne and Emmy-winning actress Catherine O’Hara has died. The native Canadian, known for Schitt’s Creek and a recent stint in Apple TV’s The Studio, was 71.

According to ABC News, O’Hara’s manager confirmed the death today, but details on the cause are still unknown.

Born in 1954, O’Hara was the sixth of seven children and began her career on the Canadian TV sketch series Second City Television, aka SCTV, in 1974, after Gilda Radner’s departure. ABC News details that she also wrote on the show, earning her first Primetime Emmy in 1982 for outstanding writing in a variety or music program.

The 80s saw her TV career transition to major film roles, landing in 1988’s Beetlejuice as Winona Ryder’s (Stranger Things, Reality Bites) abstract artist mother, Delia Deetz, via ABC News. That was followed by another iconic mother role — Kate McCallister in the 1990 holiday classic, Home Alone. She reunited with her on-screen son, Macaulay Culkin (Party Monster, Fallout), at his Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony last year.

In recent years, O’Hara became known for another iconic mother on the Emmy-winning comedy, Schitt’s Creek, according to ABC News. Here, she went meta as the fashion-forward actress Moira Rose, alongside SCTV alum and frequent screen partner Eugene Levy (American Pie, Bringin’ Down the House) as parents of a wealthy family that finds itself in hard financial times. The role won O’Hara the Emmy for Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the show’s final season in 2020.

O’Hara shone again in the second season of HBO’s video game adaptation, The Last of Us, opposite Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian, Fantastic Four: First Family). And, she was seen in last year’s Emmy-winning Apple TV series, The Studio, which began production on season two this month.

The tributes from fans and stars alike have poured in over social media.

Catherine O’Hara was an absolute treasure and I loved all her roles pic.twitter.com/V3RTaXZ96u

— David Leavitt 🎲🎮🧙‍♂️🌈 (@DavidLeavitt) January 30, 2026

Heartbroken doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Catherine O’Hara was one of a kind. A rare light in this world and her passing hits with a weight I can’t fully put into words.

She wasn’t just a legendary artist,
actor and comedian. She was an ambassador for Canada in the truest… pic.twitter.com/06jGk7OyCP

— Michael Bublé (@MichaelBuble) January 30, 2026

Only one Catherine O’Hara, and now none. Heartbreaking.

— Michael McKean (@MJMcKean) January 30, 2026

Da bambino avevo paura della morte. Poi è arrivato Beetlejuice, e l’ha resa grottesca, rumorosa, imperfetta, quasi buffa.
A volte l’arte non consola: normalizza l’orrore e così lo rende vivibile. Mi rattrista molto la morte di Catherine O’Hara! pic.twitter.com/foKUfJxjsO

— ✈🚀 (@mrsgv79) January 30, 2026

RIP to the iconic catherine o’hara. hope you’re having a laugh with john candy. pic.twitter.com/Vl95cmUC1L

— vm ❊ (@tentwentysixpm) January 30, 2026

Macaulay Culkin has paid tribute to his Home Alone mom, Catherine O’Hara.

“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.” pic.twitter.com/R90nwHqAsn

— CONSEQUENCE (@consequence) January 30, 2026