1 min readUpdated: Jan 31, 2026 12:15 AM IST
Catherine O’Hara, the Emmy-winning actor known for comedic roles across the decades — from Kevin’s beleaguered mom in Home Alone to the iconic Moira Rose in Schitt’s Creek — died Friday at 71.
The Canadian-born O’Hara died at her home in Los Angeles “following a brief illness,” according to a statement from her agency, Creative Artists Agency. Further details were not immediately available.
Catherine O’Hara’s career was launched at the Second City in Toronto in the 1970s. It was there that she first worked with Eugene Levy, who would become a lifelong collaborator — and her Schitt’s Creek costar. The two would be among the original cast of the sketch show SCTV, which would help launch the careers of other top Canadian comedians, like Martin Short and Andrea Martin.
O’Hara’s dramatic turn in HBO’s The Last of Us earned her an Emmy nomination, as did her recent role as a Hollywood producer in The Studio.
She is survived by her husband, Bo Welch, and sons Matthew and Luke.
