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Catherine O’Hara’s death, as announced on January 30, has sent an unexpected shockwave through the creative community — including with Martin Scorsese.
The Oscar-winning director worked with the Emmy-winning comic actress on his 1985 New York-set film “After Hours.” In the iconic film, she had an indelibly memorable role as an ice cream truck driver who ends up tantalizing — and terrorizing emotionally — Griffin Dunne’s character. He played a computer clerk who is spinning out across the downtown of New York amid a screwball nightmare.
“To lose Catherine O’Hara… it feels impossible to me, and to millions of others as well, I’m sure. Many people know her from ‘Schitt’s Creek.’ For many others, it’s the ‘Home Alone’ pictures or ‘Beetlejuice’ or the Christopher Guest comedies,” Scorsese said in a press statement shared with IndieWire. “For me, and for most of my friends, it’s ‘SCTV’: all I have to do is think about one of the characters she created, like Lola Heatherton or Dusty Towne, and I’m laughing. Catherine was a true comic genius, a true artist, and a wonderful human being. I was blessed to be able to work with her on ‘After Hours,’ and I’m going to miss her presence and her artistry. We all are.”
O’Hara’s part in “After Hours” was absolutely critical to the film’s success. In a yellow sweater and too much eyeliner, she proves a ridiculous foil to Dunne’s pathetic, spiraling-out character. “I hurt your arm, and now I want to dress your arm, please,” she says to his mess of a man.
“After Hours” was O’Hara’s first major big-screen role after a stint on “SCTV.” She went on to make an iconic stamp on the “Home Alone” films and working with Christopher Guest on movies including “Best in Show,” “A Mighty Wind,” and “For Your Consideration.” Her improvisational style lent itself well to collaborations with directors like Tim Burton (“Beetlejuice”) and Mike Nichols (“Heartburn”). It’s not surprising that she gelled so well with Scorsese, given her apt comic timing.
English (US) ·