How Did The Schitt’s Creek Cast Reacts To Catherine O’Hara’s Passing?
LOS ANGELES – SEPTEMBER 19: Dan Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Annie Murphy, and Eugene Levy from “Schitt’s Creek” presents appears at the 73RD EMMY AWARDS, broadcast Sunday, Sept. 19 (8:00-11:00 PM, live ET/5:00-8:00 PM, live PT) on the CBS Television Network and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+. — (Photo by Cliff Lipson/CBS via Getty Images)
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Catherine O’Hara died on January 30 at the age of 71, following a brief illness, at her home in Los Angeles. The news sent shockwaves through Hollywood — but nowhere more acutely felt than among the cast of Schitt's Creekthe show that gave O’Hara one of the great late-career roles in television history and united her with a group of actors she had known — in some cases — for decades.
Created by father and son Eugene and Dan Levy, Schitt's Creek ran for six seasons on CBC Television in Canada from 2015 to 2020, following the formerly wealthy Rose family after their business manager embezzles their entire fortune, forcing them to relocate to a small-town motel in the titular municipality — a place Johnny Rose had once purchased as a joke gift for his son. The show began as a modest success, but its fortunes transformed after it landed on Netflix in 2017, where it found a massive new audience hungry for its sharp, warmhearted comedy. By the time it ended, it had become a cultural phenomenon.
At the centre of that phenomenon was O’Hara’s Moira Rose — an eccentric former soap opera star clinging to her faded celebrity while marooned in small-town obscurity. The character was defined by an elaborate vocabulary, a commitment to glamour that bordered on the absurd, and a magnificently unplaceable accent that O’Hara created from scratch. It was, by any measure, one of the great comedic constructions of modern television. O’Hara’s performance earned her a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2020, a Golden Globe in 2021, and six consecutive Canadian Screen Awards. The show itself swept the comedy categories at the 72nd Emmys, winning nine awards in total.
What made O’Hara’s casting all the more remarkable is the history behind it. She and Eugene Levy had first become friends in the early 1970s through Second City in Toronto, eventually going on to collaborate on SCTV for nearly a decade and across four Christopher Guest mockumentaries. When the Levys developed Schitt's CreekO’Hara was their first and only choice for Moira — but she initially turned the role down, citing an aversion to long-term commitments. It took Eugene Levy’s persistent lobbying — and a promise that she could stop after one season if she wished — to bring her on board. Once she was in, the role became, by her own account, one of the great creative gifts of her life.
The Cast Speaks Out
In the hours following the news of O’Hara’s death, her Schitt's Creek castmates turned to social media and issued statements that spoke not only to her extraordinary talent but to the depth of her personal warmth — a quality that, it turns out, was as central to who she was off-screen as Moira Rose’s theatrics were on it.
Dan Levy — who played David Rose and co-created the show alongside his father — wrote on Instagram:
“What a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O’Hara’s brilliance for all those years. Having spent over fifty years collaborating with my Dad, Catherine was extended family before she ever played my family. It’s hard to imagine a world without her in it. I will cherish every funny memory I was fortunate enough to make with her. My heart goes out to Bo, Matthew, Luke and every member of her big, beautiful family.”
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 13: Daniel Levy and Catherine O’Hara of “Schitt’s Creek” speak during the Pop TV segment of the 2020 Winter TCA Press Tour at The Langham Huntington, Pasadena on January 13, 2020 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
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Eugene Levy — O’Hara’s on-screen husband and real-life collaborator for over fifty years — released a statement to Page Six:
“Words seem inadequate to express the loss I feel today. I had the honor of knowing and working with the great Catherine O’Hara for over fifty years. From our beginnings on the Second City stage, to SCTV, to the movies we did with Chris Guest, to our six glorious years on Schitt’s Creek, I cherished our working relationship, but most of all our friendship. And I will miss her. My heart goes out to Bo, Matthew, Luke, and the entire O’Hara family.”
Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara during 31st Annual Toronto International Film Festival – “For Your Consideration” Press Conference at Sutton Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage)
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Sarah Levy — who played the sweet-natured café waitress Twyla Sands and is Eugene Levy’s daughter — posted a photo of O’Hara in character on Instagram with a simple caption:
“This one cuts deep.”
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 08: (L-R) Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy and Sarah Levy attend Eugene Levy’s Hollywood Walk of Fame Star ceremony, celebrating the accomplished actor and host of Apple TV+’s “The Reluctant Traveler With Eugene Levy” on March 08, 2024 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Apple TV+)
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Jennifer Robertson — who played the relentlessly cheerful Jocelyn Schitt — told USA Today:
“I am deeply saddened to hear we have lost Catherine. Being in Catherine O’Hara’s orbit was a beautiful, magical gift. She was an absolute star who never understood why people made such a fuss about her. Her passing is a loss for everyone who knew and loved her. My deepest condolences to Bo, her sons, and the O’Hara family.”
NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 22: Actresses Annie Murphy, Catherine O’Hara and Jennifer Robertson attend the 11th Annual New York Television Festival -“Shitt’s Creek” Screening at SVA Theater on October 22, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)
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Chris Elliott — who played the eccentric Roland Schitt — shared a statement with USA Today:
“Working with her and Eugene was a dream come true for me – made all the more special because Catherine was such a warm hearted, generous and humble human being. I will always remember the laughs we shared on screen and off, and I’ll never forget our fun shopping spree at Joe Fresh.”
PASADENA, CA – JANUARY 09: (L-R) Actors Chris Elliott, Annie Murphy and Catherine O’Hara speak onstage during the ‘Schitt’s Creek’ panel at the Pop Network portion of the 2015 Winter Television Critics Association press tour at the Langham Hotel on January 9, 2015 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
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Karen Robinson — who played the no-nonsense hardware store owner Ronnie Lee — released a statement to USA Today:
“The unmitigated good fortune of sharing space and work and laughter with the brilliance that was Catherine O’Hara is something that I will treasure forever. I am heartbroken for her family and all circles of her friends and loved ones. Oh Canada – what a loss. Thank you, Catherine, for everything you gave us before you left us. So much and so timeless that a part of you will always stay with us.”
TORONTO, ONTARIO – APRIL 14: Karen Robinson and Catherine O’Hara, recipient of the Academy Icon Award, presented by CBC, attend the 2023 Canadian Screen Awards – Comedic & Dramatic Arts Awards held at Meridian Hall on April 14, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Jeremy Chan/Getty Images)
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CBC Television — the Canadian broadcaster that originally aired the show — issued an official statement:
“We are devastated to learn of the passing of Catherine O’Hara, a beloved Canadian icon whose brilliance lit up screens and stages around the world. From SCTV and Home Alone to her unforgettable portrayal of Moira Rose in Schitt’s Creek, Catherine brought unmatched talent and a rare and radiant spirit to everything she touched. With her passing, a light has gone out. We send our heartfelt condolences to Catherine’s family and friends. She will be forever missed.”
A Career That Spanned Generations
O’Hara’s passing closes a chapter on a career that touched multiple generations of audiences. She first came to prominence on SCTV in 1976, where she won an Emmy for writing in 1982. She became a household name through Home Alone in 1990, became a cult favourite through Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries in the late ‘9Os and 2000s, and then — in what many consider one of television’s great second acts — reinvented herself entirely as Moira Rose.
Even at the end, she showed no signs of slowing down. In 2025 alone, she appeared in both Apple TV+’s award-winning comedy The Studio and HBO’s The Last of Us Season 2, earning Emmy nominations for both. She reprised Delia Deetz in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice in 2024. In her own words, she had always believed in the power of collaboration: “Why work alone if you don’t have to? It’s all give and take. It’s all about listening to others and contributing.”
O’Hara is survived by her husband, production designer Bo Welch, whom she married in 1992 after meeting on the set of the original Beetlejuiceand their two sons, Matthew and Luke.
Annie Murphy and Emily Hampshire, who played Alexis Rose and Stevie Budd respectively, had not yet released public statements at the time of this article’s publication.
