Home Alone star Macaulay Culkin joined Schitt’s Creek actors Annie Murphy and Dan Levy in an on-stage tribute to the late Catherine O’Hara.
The beloved comedy actor, known for films such as Beetlejuice and TV shows such as The Studio, died on January 30 of a pulmonary embolism, with rectal cancer listed as the underlying cause of death. O’Hara was a two-time Emmy winner as well as a 10-time nominee, and at the 2026 awards last night (September 14) in Los Angeles, her most famous on-screen children paid tribute to her.
Culkin, who played the son of O’Hara’s character in two Home Alone movies, joined Murphy and Levy, who played her children in Netflix hit Schitt’s Creek, to share their memories of her.
“Catherine O’Hara. We remember her as the, forgetful mother, right?” Culkin began, jokingly referencing the Home Alone films. “But we’ll never forget about her. You know, there are all kinds of words I could use to describe Catherine. She was encouraging. She was warm. She was funny. But the word that I think of is mama.”
“You know, she wasn’t just a wife and mother to Bowe and Matthew and Luke; She was my mom. She was our mom. And by extension, she’s all of our mom. By the way, call your mother tonight, for real.”
He continued: “And like a good momma, she always showed up when I asked her to. And because that’s Catherine, that’s what she did. She showed up,” Culkin said. “And this is the best that we can do for her tonight. Show up for her. So, she may have forgotten me, twice, but we will always remember her.”
Murphy then shared that “Catherine’s laugh was a perpetual ‘yes and…’” She added, “It challenged anyone who heard it to join in and be as delighted as she was, and she spread that delight everywhere.
“After we lost Catherine, I was passed a note on an Air Canada flight that said ‘she was so special, I hope you’re doing ok’.”
She also spoke of being hugged at petrol stations and given impressions of O’Hara’s characters from strangers in wine stores. “These are only a very few of the interactions I’ve been lucky enough to have that remind me how profoundly Catherine has impacted the world,” Murphy said. “And it’s because she brought us joy.”
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Levy, the creator of Schitt’s Creek as well as O’Hara’s co-star, said: “the greatest lesson I learned from Catherine, both professionally and personally was to always say yes. Say yes to her instincts, all of them. As radical as they may sometimes seem, she is miles ahead of you and you will learn to catch up.”
He continued: “Say yes to helping her build a TV character over the age of 60 that wears leather miniskirts and eight-inch heels and speaks in a strange, sometimes unintelligible transatlantic accent, and know that she will not scare an audience away. Say yes to that rewrite she emailed you sometimes the night before. ‘Dear Dan, some thoughts.’ It will always improve the story.”
He concluded: “Say yes to the concept of a wig ball. Say yes to her asking to wear a wig as a hat. Say yes to her naming that wig. Say yes to giving her space to experiment and create. It will amaze you on a daily basis and it will change your life. Say yes to her dinner invites and her stories, and her wisdom and her generosity. Those are the things you will hold on to the tightest. Always say yes to any opportunity to revel in the presence of greatness.”
Music star Noah Kahan sang ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ during the ceremony’s In Memoriam section, which included O’Hara.
The ceremony itself saw Widow’s Bay, The Pitt, and DTF St Louis among the big Emmy winners. Read the full list here.
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