Macaulay Culkin, Annie Murphy and Dan Levy Pay Tribute to Catherine O’Hara at Emmys: “She Was Our Mom”

Macaulay Culkin, Annie Murphy and Dan Levy honored Catherine O’Hara at the 2026 Emmys.

Ahead of the In Memoriam segment of the awards show, O’Hara’s former collaborators took the stage in her honor, with the Home Alone star reflecting on his memories with the late actress.

“Catherine O’Hara. You remember her as the, forgetful mother, right?” Culkin said referencing the Home Alone film franchise. “Yeah. But, no. I’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.”

O’Hara played the mother to Culkin’s Kevin McCallister in the first two Home Alone films. He continued, “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 again, for real.

“And like a good momma, she always showed up when I asked her to. And because I was Catholic, 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, O’Hara’s Schitt’s Creek co-star, began her tribute by noting, “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.”

O’Hara also played the mother to Murphy and Levy’s characters on Schitt’s Creek.

Levy, who also created Schitt’s Creek, the series O’Hara won one of her two Emmys tied to, said that “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 added. “Say yes to helping her build a TV character over the age of 60 that wears leather miniskirts and 8-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.”

Levy continued by listing more things to say yes to: “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,” he concluded, as Noah Kahan performed a rendition of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” for the In Memoriam segment.

Ahead of the 2026 Emmys, Levy teased his tribute to O’Hara during NBC’s official preshow on TikTok, telling hosts Trisha Paytas and Nicky Campbell that it would be “bittersweet.” He said, “I’m honoring Catherine tonight, which is still surreal to even think about, so you know it’s like a very bittersweet experience.”

Heading into this year’s Emmys, The Pitt led the nominees with a total of 25 nods, followed by Hacks with 24 (which set a record for a comedy series nominations in a single year) and Widow’s Bay with 19.

The 78th Emmy Awards telecast live from the Peacock Theater at L.A. Live in Los Angeles Monday night on NBC, streaming on Peacock. Mariska Hargitay served as the night’s host, after last week winning two Emmys at the Creative Arts ceremony.

See the full 2026 Emmys winners list and all the dazzling red carpet looks here.