Catherine ohara death new details illness before dying 20260202 p5pqne.html – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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This was published 7 months ago

Catherine O'Hara's closest friends 'kept in the dark' about her health in the lead up to her death

Amy Lyall
Amy Lyall

Catherine O'Hara and her husband, Bo Welch, reportedly knew how sick she was before her death. 

The actress died on Friday at age 71, but in the days afterwards, new details have emerged about her health in the lead-up to her passing. 

The Home Alone star's agent confirmed she had died "following a brief illness", but she was hospitalised on the morning of her death, after struggling with her breathing. 

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Bo Welch and Catherine O'Hara attend Apple TV+'s Primetime Emmy Party Red Carpet at Ysabel on September 14, 2025 in West Hollywood, California.

Bo Welch and Catherine O'Hara reportedly kept those closest to them in the dark about her health before her death.  Getty

New details reveal the actress was hospitalised in a "serious condition" on the morning of her death, according to a spokesperson for the LA Fire Department.

As per People, officials received a call at 4:48 a.m. on Jan. 30 for an "approximately 70-year-old" unnamed woman who resided at O'Hara's Los Angeles residence.

Those from the Los Angeles Fire Department arrived on the scene and transported O'Hara to the hospital. She died later that day.

According to the Daily Mail, Welch may have known "what was coming" but "many of those closest to O'Hara were kept in the dark about her condition during her final days".

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Catherine O'Hara died at age 71, "following a brief illness".  Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Sources told the outlet that some pals were left in "complete shock" after her death. 

O'Hara was scheduled to shoot for Season 2 of Seth Rogen's The Studio but pulled out just days before her death. 

The schedule was reportedly "reworked" to focus on scenes without her character, with The Sun claiming O'Hara was addressing "personal matters". 

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"It was not widely known she was dealing with any health or major issues," an insider told the outlet following her death.

Her cause of death is not yet known. 

Catherine was due to film for Season 2 of The Studio, but pulled out for "personal matters".  WireImage

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O'Hara's sudden death rocked Hollywood, with many of her A-list pals paying tribute to her, including Alec Baldwin, Macaulay Culkin, Reese Witherspoon and her Schitt's Creek cast members. 

She had made a handful of public appearances in the months before her death, but appeared in high spirits, according to people who saw her. 

O'Hara and Welch were married for 33 years and also share two sons, Matthew 31, and Luke 29. 

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