Catherine O’Hara, star of “Beetlejuice,” “Home Alone” and “Schitt’s Creek,” dies at 71

Actor Catherine O’Hara, known for her roles in “Home Alone,” “Beetlejuice,” and “Schitt’s Creek,” has died at 71, according to a statement from her agency, CAA.

O’Hara died at her Los Angeles home “following a brief illness,” her agency said. 

O’Hara was born in Canada and started her career at Toronto’s Second City Theater before creating the sketch comedy show “SCTV” and rising to fame in the 1980s. Her most famous film roles include Delia Deetz in “Beetlejuice” and its sequel, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” and as Kate McAllister in “Home Alone” and “Home Alone II: Lost in New York.” Other films she appeared in included “For Your Consideration” and “After Hours.” 

In 2015, O’Hara joined long-time friend Eugene Levy in the comedy “Schitt’s Creek.” The two met in Toronto in 1970, worked together at the Second City Theater, and went on to share the screen in seven films. O’Hara told CBS News that she was initially nervous about doing the series, but her “love and respect” for Levy and his son, series writer and star Daniel Levy, won her over. O’Hara’s Moira Rose quickly became an iconic television character. She won an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her performance. 

Most recently, O’Hara appeared in the Apple TV+ comedy “The Studio” and HBO’s “The Last of Us.” O’Hara received Emmy Award nominations for both roles. 

In 1992, O’Hara married production designer Bo Welch, whom she met on the set of “Beetlejuice.” They had two children, Matthew and Luke. 

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