‘Hard to imagine a world without’ Schitt’s Creek star Catherine O’Hara

Schitt’s Creek co-creator Dan Levy described Catherine O’Hara as “family before she ever played my family” after his co-star’s death at the age of 71.

The Canadian-American actress, who won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her role in the TV comedy series, died on Friday at her home in Los Angeles “following a brief illness”, according to her agency CAA.

She was also known for roles in Home Alone and the Beetlejuice films.

Levy said on Instagram he would “cherish every funny memory I was fortunate enough to make with her”.

“What a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O’Hara’s brilliance for all those years,” he wrote.

“Having spent over fifty years collaborating with my Dad (Schitt’s Creek co-star and co-creator Eugene), Catherine was extended family before she ever played my family. It’s hard to imagine a world without her in it.

Meryl Streep, who acted alongside O’Hara in the 1986 comedy Heartburn, said in a statement: “Catherine O’Hara brought love and light to our world, through whipsmart compassion for the collection of eccentrics she portrayed… such a loss for her family and friends, and the audience she graced as friends.”

Macaulay Culkin, who played O’Hara’s son in the 1990 classic Christmas movie Home Alone and the 1992 sequel Home Alone 2: Lost In New York, was among the famous names paying tribute.

He wrote on Instagram: “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.”

In 2024, the actress reprised her role as Delia Deetz in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, having starred in the first film in 1988.

Co-star Michael Keaton said: “We go back before the first Beetlejuice. She’s been my pretend wife, my pretend nemesis and my real life, true friend.

“This one hurts. Man am I gonna miss her.”

Alec Baldwin, who also starred in the original film, described O’Hara as “one of the greatest comic talents in the movie business” who possessed “a quality that was all her own”.

Seth Rogen, her co-star in the Apple TV+ comedy series The Studio – for which O’Hara received both Emmy and Golden Globe nominations – called the news of her passing “devastating”.

He said in an Instagram post: “I told O’Hara when I first met her I thought she was the funniest person I’d ever had the pleasure of watching on screen.

“Home Alone was the movie that made me want to make movies. Getting to work with her was a true honour.

“She was hysterical, kind, intuitive, generous… she made me want to make our show good enough to be worthy of her presence in it. This is just devastating. We’re all lucky we got to live in a world with her in it.”

Another recent role saw her starring in the second season of The Last Of Us, alongside Pedro Pascal, who paid tribute to her, saying: “Oh, genius to be near you. Eternally grateful. There is less light in my world, this lucky world that had you, will keep you, always.”

Actor and director Christopher Guest, who worked with O’Hara in four films including Best In Show where she starred alongside Eugene Levy, said in a statement: “I am devastated. We have lost one of the comic giants of our age.”

Actor and comedian Ben Stiller said on X it was “hard to explain the impact she had on comedy”.

Canadian actor and comedian Mike Myers described her death as “a very sad day for comedy and for Canada”, describing O’Hara as “one of the greatest comedy artists in history”.

Former Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau called her a “beloved Canadian icon” while the country’s current premier Mark Carney said: “Canada has lost a legend.”

In a statement, Mr Carney said he joined all Canadians in mourning, adding: “Over five decades of work, Catherine earned her place in the canon of Canadian comedy.”

O’Hara is survived by her husband Bo Welch and sons Matthew and Luke. The statement said her family will hold a private celebration of her life.