BREAKING NEWSCatherine O'Hara's Cause of Death Revealed Less Than 2 Weeks After Shocking Medical Emergency
Legendary actress Catherine O'Hara's cause of death was revealed less than two weeks after she passed at 71 following a shocking medical emergency.
Feb. 9 2026, Published 2:55 p.m. ET
Legendary actress Catherine O'Hara's cause of death has been revealed less than two weeks after her death at 71 years old.
The Schitt's Creek star died of a blood clot in her lungs, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office, a news outlet reported on Monday, February 9. Her immediate cause of death was listed as pulmonary embolism, with rectal cancer as the underlying cause.
Catherine O'Hara's Cause of Death Revealed
Catherine O'Hara died of a blood clot in her lungs, according to a death certificate.
The actress has been cremated, with her remains given to her husband, Robert "Bo" Welch, per a death certificate obtained by the outlet.
O'Hara's death was confirmed by her representation, Creative Artists Agency, on January 30.
“Prolific multi-award-winning actress, writer and comedian Catherine O’Hara died today at her home in Los Angeles following a brief illness,” the organization said in a statement to a news outlet.
Catherine O'Hara Had 'Difficulty' Breathing Before Being Rushed to the Hospital
Catherine O'Hara's death was confirmed on January 30.
The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to call from the star's home at around 4:48 a.m., where she was reportedly experiencing trouble breathing before paramedics arrived at her home and transported her to the hospital in "serious" condition.
Multiple outlets reported that the actress suffered from situs inversus, a rare condition in which the arrangement of the internal organs is a mirror image of normal anatomy, according to NIH.
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Catherine O'Hara Made Her Last Public Appearance in September 2025
Catherine O'Hara's last public appearance was at the 2025 Emmy Awards.
O'Hara made her final public appearance alongside her husband in September 2025 while attending the Emmy Awards.
The actress was nominated for Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role on the Seth Rogen-led series, The Studio and Guest Actress for a Drama Series on The Last of Us.
O'Hara skipped the 2026 Golden Globes in January despite being nominated.
Catherine O'Hara Revealed Her COVID Diagnosis Last Year
Catherine O'Hara revealed she contracted COVID last year.
The Beetlejuice actress experienced some health issues over the last year, revealing that she contracted COVID during the production of The Studio.
“I got COVID at The Sphere, and that’s all I could see watching that one. I can see my posture is just [droops her body],” she explained to a news outlet in May 2025. “I didn’t test because we were trying to finish shooting, and we were leaving town in a day or two, so we had to shoot all those scenes.”
“I just kept my distance,” O’Hara continued. “At one point, I had a water bottle down on the floor, and Evan [Goldberg] came over and he said, 'Oh, do you want your water?' 'No, don’t pick it up!' I just knew, like, ‘Don’t touch anything!’ Thank God I didn’t give it to anyone.”
