Michael Keaton reflects on friendship with Catherine O’Hara after her death

Michael Keaton has reflected on his decades-long friendship with Catherine O’Hara, just a week after the beloved actress’s death at age 71.

Speaking at Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals 2026 Man of the Year event on Feb. 6, the 74-year-old actor shared heartfelt memories of his Beetlejuice costar, who died on Jan. 30.

“I was a big SCTV fan. I am the biggest SCTV fan,” Keaton said, recalling how their connection began. Though he struggled to pinpoint their exact first meeting, he remembered bonding over their similar upbringings. “Like myself, she has a big family. She’s one of seven, and I’m one of seven. And so somehow we got to be friends.”

Keaton fondly described a night in Toronto spent with O’Hara and her siblings, shooting pool at a local bar while both were working in the city. 

Beyond their shared backgrounds, he said he always regarded her as “kind of a goddess” in the comedy world, noting that those in the industry recognized her brilliance long before mainstream audiences did.

The pair famously starred together in 1988’s Beetlejuice, alongside Winona Ryder and Alec Baldwin. 

Their professional relationship extended beyond the cult classic. Keaton revealed that he personally suggested O’Hara for the role of his ex-wife in the 2005 film Game 6. “I said, ‘Hey, how about Catherine O’Hara as my ex-wife?’ So I called her, and she came down,” he recalled.

Following news of her death, Keaton shared an emotional tribute on Instagram, posting a recent photo of the two together. 

“We go back before the first Beetlejuice,” he wrote. “She’s been my pretend wife, my pretend nemesis and my real life, true friend. This one hurts. Man am I gonna miss her.”

He later honored her in a written tribute, describing knowing O’Hara as “breathing rarefied air” and praising the warmth and light she brought to every conversation. “To have Catherine O’Hara as your friend is a blessing,” he wrote.

Born in Toronto in 1954, O’Hara rose to prominence with the sketch comedy series SCTV before transitioning to film. 

She earned widespread acclaim for roles in Home Alone, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Wyatt Earp and, most notably, Schitt’s Creek, for which she won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2020.