Catherine O’Hara won a place in the hearts and homes of American families everywhere when she starred as the strict but loving mother of Kevin McCallister in the holiday blockbuster “Home Alone.” O’Hara unexpectedly died at 71 on January 30, 2026, TMZ reported the same day.
The outlet says two sources with direct knowledge confirmed the star’s passing, and the cause of death was not immediately clear. However, it is being reported that O’Hara was rushed to the hospital a few hours before she died. TMZ says first responders were called to her Brentwood home just before 5 AM, and she was transported to the hospital in “serious condition.”
Catherine O’Hara Earned Millions During Her Illustrious Acting Career
GettyCelebrity Net Worth says O’Hara’s net worth was sitting around $10 million when she passed away.
Along with starring in the “Home Alone” franchise as the mom of Macaulay Culkin’s character, Kevin McCallister, she was best known for her roles as Moira Rose in the sitcom “Schitt’s Creek” and as Delia Beetz in “Beetlejuice.”
According to O’Hara’s IMDb biography, she first gained recognition in the acting world on the Canadian sketch comedy show “SCTV,” which premiered in September 1976. Her talent shined on the show through her impressions of famous actors including Lucille Ball, Katharine Hepburn, and Brooke Shields.
O’Hara was a favorite of director Tim Burton, starring in three of his projects. Along with 1988’s “Beetlejuice,” she appeared in his 1993 hit “The Nightmare Before Christmas” as Sally, and voiced two characters in his 2012 project “Frankweenie.”
Catherine O’Hara Showed Johnny Carson Her Impressions & Told Him About ‘Home Alone’
In a November 1990 appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson,” O’Hara talked about her big “Home Alone” role. She told the host her whole family viewed and enjoyed the film ahead of its opening day. She said her mom asked her, “Tell Johnny that we all loved it.”
She also reflected on her “SCTV” sketches, which Carson called “Marvelous” and bemoaned the fact that NBC always played the show super late at night.
“When I was a kid, like 11 or 12, I started doing them, and I would impersonate impersonators. They were mostly men,” O’Hara recalled on where her interest in impressions began.
“I finally learned how to do women from Marty Short, cause he does a great Katharine Hepburn. He’s done it on your show, I know,” she added.
O’Hara leaves behind her husband, director and production designer Bo Welch, along with their two sons, Matthew and Luke. Read all about Catherine O’Hara’s family here.
