Catherine O’Hara’s Cause of Death Revealed After ‘Brief Illness’

New details have been revealed about Catherine O’Hara‘s sudden death.

O’Hara’s immediate cause of death was listed as pulmonary embolism, a blood clot in the lungs, with lung cancer as the primary cause, according to a report from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office obtained by TMZ on Monday, February 9.

The report also stated that O’Hara had been burned.

Us Weekly confirmed on January 30 that Schitt’s Creek the actor died at the age of 71.

Creative Artists Agency shared a statement on O’Hara’s death in LA following “short illness.”

A spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department previously said Us that emergency personnel arrived at O’Hara’s home that morning at 4:48 a.m. in response to a call for medical assistance. It’s been a long time moved in a nearby hospital in a “critical” condition.

O’Hara’s career as a Hollywood actor spanned nearly five decades, beginning with the Canadian sketch comedy series. Second City Televisionhe got his first Emmy for it.

While he has various roles in movies like Beetle juice, Home alone again Best in ShowO’Hara shined on the small screen while appearing in highly regarded shows like this one Schitt’s Creek again The Last of Us.

Her most recent role was playing Patty Leigh in the Studio. The performance earned him a nomination for the 2025 Emmys, which was his last public appearance in September.

When asked about his status as a comedy icon, O’Hara spoke modestly Variety in March 2025, “I don’t think so, but it’s good that others do.”

Soon after O’Hara’s death was confirmed, many of her fans began sharing unforgettable memories with the actress.

“Mom. I thought we had time,” Home alone star Macaulay Culkin he wrote via Instagram on January 30. “I wanted more. I wanted to sit in the seat next to you. I heard you but I had more to say. I love you. I’ll see you later.”

In another Instagram post, Beetlejuice juice the costar Justin Theroux she wrote, “🕊️Oh Catherine. You will be greatly missed.”

Away from the lights and cameras, O’Hara was married Bo Welch since 1992. The duo met on the set Beetle juice in 1987 with the help of a director Tim Burton.

“[He] he was very nice, he ended up asking me,” she said The New Yorker in 2019. “We went on location at the end of the movie, and we started dating. I moved to LA to be with him. Yes, I moved for love.”

The couple welcomed their first son, Matthew, in 1994 and their second son, Luke, in 1997. According to CAA, a private celebration of life will be held by the family at a later date.

“I’m with my family as much as possible,” O’Hara said 519 Magazine in August 2019. “In deciding what career I might be involved in for the rest of my working life, my family always comes first. I have two sons, and when they were babies, I thought what’s the point? What’s the point of having children if I’m not going to live with them, so that was always the first consideration and will always be.”