Sarah Levy Mourns

Sarah Levy is mourning the loss of her longtime collaborator and Schitt’s Creek costar Catherine O’Hara, who died at age 71.

The actress and producer, best known for her role as Moira Rose on the Emmy-winning comedy, was remembered by Sarah Levy in an Instagram tribute shared Friday, January 30. Posting a photo in O’Hara’s honor, Levy wrote, “This one cuts deep. What an honor it has been to know and work with and love Catherine O’Hara.”

Levy, 39, worked closely with O’Hara on Schitt’s Creek, the acclaimed series created by her brother Dan Levy and father Eugene Levy. The show, which premiered in 2015, followed the wealthy Rose family after they lose their fortune and relocate to a small town they once bought as a joke. O’Hara starred as flamboyant matriarch Moira Rose opposite Eugene Levy’s Johnny Rose, with Dan Levy and Annie Murphy playing their adult children, David and Alexis. Sarah Levy appeared throughout the series as Twyla Sands, the warm-hearted waitress at Café Tropical.

Dan Levy also paid tribute to O’Hara on Friday, sharing memories from decades of collaboration and emphasizing her place as extended family long before Schitt’s Creek. The series itself became a cultural phenomenon, sweeping the major comedy categories at the Emmys and cementing O’Hara’s Moira Rose as one of television’s most celebrated characters—alongside other ensemble standouts such as Chris Elliott and Noah Reid, who helped shape the show’s distinct comedic voice.

News of Catherine O’Hara’s death broke Friday, with no immediate cause disclosed. The Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed paramedics responded to a medical aid call at her Brentwood home at 4:48 a.m., after which she was transported to a hospital in serious condition. Her representatives at Creative Artists Agency later confirmed she died at her Los Angeles home following a brief illness.

O’Hara’s final public appearance was four months earlier at the Emmys, where her series The Studio won four awards. Beyond Schitt’s Creek, she was celebrated for iconic film roles, including Kevin McCallister’s mother in Home Alone, directed by Chris Columbus, and her performance in Beetlejuice, directed by Tim Burton. Tributes poured in from former costars, including Macaulay Culkin.

She is survived by her husband, Bo Welch, and their sons, Matthew Welch and Luke Welch.