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Catherine O’Hara, the well-loved performer widely recognized for her performances in Home Alone, Schitt’s Creek, The Nightmare Before Christmas and, most recently, The Studio, has passed away, various reports indicate. Her representative substantiated the information to numerous news sources on January 30, 2026. As admirers and colleagues mourn the departure, many are additionally questioning the circumstances of her passing, since her agent mentioned the late Toronto, Canada, resident experienced a “short illness.”
Read on for recent details about everything known thus far pertaining to O’Hara’s demise as the entertainment world mourns the departed, gifted seasoned actress.
How Old Was Catherine O’Hara When She Died?
O’Hara was 71 years of age when she passed on January 30, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. She possessed both Canadian and American nationality.
How Did Catherine O’Hara Die? Her Cause of Death Updates
As of the time this article was published, the precise reason for O’Hara’s death remains undisclosed. Her agent communicated to Variety on January 30 that she died subsequent to a “brief sickness.”
O’Hara’s final societal showing occurred in September 2025 during the Primetime Emmy Awards and the subsequent celebrations.
Was Catherine O’Hara Sick Before She Died? What We Know About Her ‘Illness’
As pointed out prior, O’Hara’s representative stated she suffered a “short illness” without specifying which one. In the past, O’Hara had disclosed she had been diagnosed with dextrocardia, a variation of situs inversus, a state in which the heart is situated on the right aspect of the chest while the remaining organs are inverted, according to the Cleveland Clinic. A great number of individuals with situs inversus are unaware they have it and are capable of living a long existence.
In March 2025, O’Hara made an appearance on The Wrap‘s “Unwrapped” podcast to talk about her experience contributing to The Studio. When one of the podcast’s co-hosts inquired about how she was feeling that particular day, the late actress jested that she was “running on empty” resulting from insufficient sleep but was nonetheless “pleased and appreciative” to converse concerning the Apple TV+ program.
Catherine O’Hara’s Movies & TV Shows
O’Hara demonstrated versatility in the motion picture sector, having been engaged as an actress, a screenwriter, and a humorist. As an actress, she garnered recognition for her remarkable vocalization of, “Kevin!” in Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. She also appeared in Beetlejuice, and was scheduled to return for its continuation, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and provided the voice for the well-liked character Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas. O’Hara acted in Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind and several other motion pictures.
Most recently, O’Hara was seen in The Last of Us and The Studio.
Her most notable small screen role was portraying Moira Rose in Schitt’s Creek, a performance that earned her a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, as well as a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy.