Catherine O'Hara Dead: 'Home Alone' Actress Dies at Age 71 as Cause of Death Remains a Mystery
Catherine O'Hara has died.
Jan. 30 2026, Published 1:19 p.m. ET
Legendary actress Catherine O'Hara has died at 71 years old, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The star, who was famous for her work in Home Alone and Schitt's Creek, passed away on Friday, January 30.
What Did Catherine O'Hara Die From?
O'Hara starred in several notable films, including 'Beetlejuice.'
At this time, the cause of death is unclear.
Aside from the two aforementioned roles, O'Hara was in notable projects including Beetlejuice, the sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind.
Most recently, the actress appeared opposite Seth Rogen in The Studio, an Apple TV+ show, receiving an Emmy nomination for her work.
Before that nomination, O'Hara had won Emmy Awards, including one for Schitt's Creek in 2020 and one for her writing contributions to the TV show SCTV Network 90 in 1982.
Macaulay Culkin Addresses Catherine O'Hara's Death
Macaulay Culkin said he 'wanted more' with O'Hara.
Macaulay Culkin, who played O'Hara's son in Home Alone, released a statement on her death.
"Mama. I thought we had time," he wrote on Instagram.
"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," he added.
With the post, Culkin included a picture of the pair hugging in their movie and a more recent shot of them as well.
Catherine O'Hara's Emmy Award Acceptance Speech
O'Hara thanked her hair and makeup people when accepting her 2020 Emmy Award.
When winning the Emmy for her work in Schitt's Creek, O'Hara was full of gratitude for being nominated among "very cool women."
"I will forever be grateful to Eugene and Daniel Levy for the opportunity, for bestowing upon me the opportunity to play a woman of a certain age, my age, who gets to fully be her ridiculous self," she said at the time.
She also thanked her wardrobe, makeup, and hair people on the show, using her character Moira Rose's colorful language.
"May I please wish you all a sound mind and a sound body," she added, as the world was battling the COVID-19 pandemic at the time she received her award. "And though these are the strangest of days, may you have as much joy being holed up in a room or two with your family as I had with my dear Rose's."
A 'Schitt's Creek' Reboot
O'Hara played Moira Rose on 'Schitt's Creek.'
While Schitt's Creek lasted for six seasons, fans have been clamoring for more since it ended in 2020.
Dan Levy, who co-created the show with his dad, Eugene, had said last year he had a "kernel of an idea" for a new iteration of the show.
"I think about it all the time," he said on Watch What Happens Live in July 2025. "I love the show so much, and I don’t want to disappoint the show, and I don’t want to disappoint the fans. And I know it’s easy to just take a check and put something out there, but I care about it too much. I’m just waiting for that idea to be the right one. And then maybe, yeah."
In response, Eugene said on Today's Girl Code, "If he said he had a kernel of an idea for a reboot, he didn’t lay it on me. I don’t know what he necessarily comes up with; I don’t have Instagram."
"Listen, we’ve always said we would love – obviously, we love this group, we love the cast, we love the show, and we would love to get together and do something,' he added. "It’s just, no idea has come up. Nobody has come up with the idea yet. And whatever it is, it has to start kind of on the level where we left off. Otherwise, there’s no point."
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If 'Schitt's Creek' were to return, it would be missing an integral character now that O'Hara has died.
There have also been talks for years about a Schitt's Creek movie. To that, Eugene shared, "Wow, that’s a good prediction. I kind of like that.
"That gets me excited. Never say never."
Sadly, if the show were to return now, it would be missing an integral, beloved character.
