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10 Best Catherine O'Hara Movies and Shows to See Before Watching Beetlejuice Beetlejuice; From Penelope to Schitt’s Creek
10 Catherine O'Hara TV shows and movies that put her on the map. Plenty of these helped her become the star she is today and one even led to her resurgence! Read on to know more.
Catherine O’Hara, the beloved film and television star, has entertained audiences for nearly fifty years. From her famous red hair to her expressive voice, O’Hara is a force on both the big and small screens.
Now, it’s time to dive into her best movies and shows before Beetlejuice 2 premieres:
10. A Series of Unfortunate Events (2017-2019)
From creators Daniel Handler, Barry Sonnenfeld, and Mark Hudis comes the Netflix adaptation of Lemony Snicket's popular book series.
O'Hara is a part of the TV as well as film versions and played her roles perfectly. The main story is about 3 orphaned Baudelaire kids trying to escape Count Olaf, who wants their inheritance.
In the Netflix adaptation of the book, the actress played the role of Dr. Georgina Orwell. In the book series, her character appears in the fourth novel called The Miserable Mill.
While her fans have loved her in both adaptations, her portrayal of Orwell is better loved. It's all because the character is more engaging.
After all, Orwell wants the kids’ inheritance as much as Olaf, her former flame. Neil Patrick Harris played Olaf in the Netflix version and O'Hara's chemistry with him is one of the great things to love about the show.
9. Schitt’s Creek (2015-2020)
Catherine O'Hara played Moira Rose in this Dan Levy-created show that raked in awards when it was on-air. In fact, she won the Best Lead Actress multiple times at the Canadian Screen Awards thanks to this series.
So, this show rejuvenated the star’s popularity and led to a resurgence in her career as well!
The show is about a rich couple called Johnny and Moira Rose, who lost everything in a fraud. Well, not everything. They still had the Schitt's Creek, a small town they bought just a joke.
But now they have to adjust to life without the money all the while interacting with various eccentric personalities who come into their lives.
8. Six Feet Under (2001-2005)
Created by Alan Ball, this show is about Nathaniel Fisher and his family who run a funeral home business. But when Nathaniel and his wife’s son, Nate Jr., comes home for Christmas, he finds his father dead and himself a new owner of the funeral service.
O’Hara played the role of Carol Ward, the neurotic self-obsessed boss of Lisa Kimmel. It must be said that her appearances are less in the series. However, the series is so good that it needs to be mentioned!
7. Penelope (2006)
Director Mark Palanski weaved a tale of a fairytale rom-com where Catherine O’Hara played the role of Jessica. She was the mother of the titular character, who Christina Ricci played.
Penelope is under a curse- she has a pig snout and ears. No, it’s as cute as the Instagram filters make it out to be.
Everyday life for her is hellish as she is made fun of and tortured. However, the curse can be broken only by true love. But that’s not all. There’s another stipulation- one of her kind has to accept her.
This film about love and self-acceptance is highly underrated and a great watch.
6. A Mighty Wind (2003)
Directed by Christopher Guest, Catherine O'Hara played Mickey Crabbe in this film about folk music. Her chemistry with Eugene Levy who played Mitch is one of the most memorable parts of the film.
In the mockumentary, Mickey is a part of The Folksmen, a folk trio getting up to hilarious things. But their main goal is to honor their manager’s death with a reunion concert. As one might expect, O’Hara does bring her singing voice to this film.
The music was in fact performed live. Two tracks- A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow and When You're Next to Me were quite loved by audiences back then.
5. Waiting for Guffman (1996)
Another film in this list by Christopher Guest and this too is a mockumentary. But this time, it's about theater productions happening in small towns.
Catherine O’Hara played the role of Sheila Albertson, a real estate agent, and an amateur performer in the play by Corky St. Clair, played by Christopher Guest himself.
The play is called Red, White, and Blaine and the aspiring director hopes that it can be his ticket to Broadway. This cult-classic movie was one of the stepping stones for the actress to greater heights in her career and helped her showcase her improvisation ability.
After all, the shoot was only for 29 days and there was no script!
4. Beetlejuice (1988)
No list of Catherine O'Hara's films is complete without Beetlejuice! In the film, Adam and Barbara are a dead couple chilling in their home. The problem begins when a brash family stomps into their peaceful (afterlife) existence.
To get their life back, the couple enlists the help of Betelgeuse, a human exorcist. But things go haywire and now Adam and Barbara have to defend the humans!
O’Hara played Delia Deetz, the artistic but eccentric stepmother to Lydia, played by Winona Ryder, People still love her song Day-O to this day.
Beetlejuice 2 is ready and will be released in theaters on September 6, 2024.
3. Best in Show (2000)
Another film in this list by Christopher Guest and this one too is a mockumentary. In this film, O’Hara played the role of a neurotic dog owner called Cookie Fleck.
The film is about a bunch of documentary filmmakers who are at the Mayflower Dog Show to capture all the action. But things go from healthy competition among dog owners to weirdness pretty quickly!
2. After Hours (1985)
Director Martin Scorsese’s underrated film- After Hours, is about one evening in the life of Paul Hackett, played by Griffin Dunne. He wants to return after visiting Marcy, played by Rosanna Arquette.
But making his way uptown seems like a herculean task. During his journey, he meets Gail, played by O’Hara. Gail is an ice cream truck vendor who mistakes Paul for a burglar and calls on the locals to chase after him.
Admittedly, O’Hara’s role in the film is limited but her comic timing is impeccable and back then she was appreciated for her part.
1. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Catherine O'Hara played Sally, the ragdoll character in Tim Burton's animated musical fantasy. Her hauntingly sweet performance adds depth to the film.
The main plot of the film revolves around Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town. He wants a change because he is bored. He thinks there’s more to life than just ghost pranks and Halloween jumpscares.
So he ends up at the Christmas Town which is starkly different from his grey one. Impressed and exhilarated, he returns to his town and tells them what they need to do to get some spice back in life.
However, the ghosts, ghouls, and goblins have quite a tough time putting together a Christman celebration. Sally is Jack’s love interest in the film.
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