Catherine O’Hara and Rob Reiner received tributes at the 2026 Emmy Awards’ “In Memoriam” segment led by performers who were close to each of them.
O’Hara’s former co-stars — Macaulay Culkin of “Home Alone” and Annie Murphy and Dan Levy of “Schitt’s Creek — celebrated the late actor in an emotional moment that began the segment. To start, Culkin, who as a child actor played O’Hara’s character’s son in the movie franchise, described the special connection the two shared.
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“She was encouraging. She was warm. She was funny, but the word that I think of is ‘mama.’ You know, she wasn’t just a wife and mother to Beau and Matthew. She was my mom. She was our mom, and by extension, she’s all of her mom,” Culkin said.
“She may have forgotten me, twice,” Culkin said, poking fun at the movies’ plots, “but we will always remember her.”
Murphy, who with Levy played the adult kids of O’Hara’s character in “Schitt’s Creek,” said O’Hara’s laugh “challenged anyone who heard it to join in and be as delighted as she was.”
Levy said the most important lesson he learned from O’Hara was to “say yes” to new challenges and adventures, including the joyful creation of her quirky bewigged character Moira Rose.
“Say yes to her naming that wig,” Levy said. “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.”
Later during the “In Memoriam” segment, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Noah Kahan performed Simon & Garfunkel’s hit 1970 ballad “Bridge Over Troubled Water” as viewers saw images of other beloved stars who died over the past year, including Dolly Parton, James Van Der Beek, Hayden Panettiere, Eric Dane and more.
On the red carpet before the ceremony, Kahan explained to TODAY’s Sheinelle Jones why he chose to sing “Bridge Over Troubled Water” for Parton and others.
“It’s always represented so much hope and peace and kindness, which I think Dolly personified throughout her life and career,” said Kahan.
“We lost so many legends this year. I am really excited to get the chance to help memorialize them and to pay the respect to those who have contribute to this amazing industry and to art and culture,” added the singer.
The “In Memoriam” segment ended with a tearful Jamie Lee Curtis honoring late creator and director James Burrow and Hollywood director Rob Reiner, who she called a “cherished legend.”
Reiner got his start in television as an actor on “All in the Family” in the 1970s. Curtis described Reiner as “generous and kind and funny as hell and a friend to all.”
Last week, Reiner won a posthumous Emmy for a guest role on “The Bear,” Curtis revealed, breaking a record his father, comedy giant Carl Reiner, had held for longest time in between Emmy wins.
Reiner’s last Emmy award for acting came 48 years ago for “All in the Family.”
Below is a complete list of late entertainers, producers and creators in Hollywood who were honored in this year’s “In Memoriam” segment.
Stars Honored in the Segment
- James Van Der Beek
- Crawford “Mac” McGill
- Dixon Q Dern
- Sarah Caplan
- Kiki Shepard
- Anthony Geary
- Isiah Whitlock Jr.
- Gary Dontzig
- Demond Wilson
- Gil Herard
- June Lockhart
- Anthony Head
- Diane Ladd
- Sid Krofft
- Ted Turner
- Patricia Crowley
- Bruce Bilson
- John Masius
- Eric Dane
- Bob Broder
- Eric Overmyer
- Hayden Panettiere
- Tom Cherones
- Louise Lasser
- TK Carter
- Robert Duvall
- Dolly Parton
- Sandy Wernick
- Robert Carradine
- Sylvia Fold
- Scott Printz
- Vincent Pastore
- Kevin Arkadie
- Maria Riva
- Peter Lassally
- Harris Katleman
- Randolph Mantooth
- Laura Adler
- Jon Cypher
- Jay Daniel
- Gene Shalit
- Cleto Escobedo III
- Salli Newman
- Sam Neill
- Hal Williams
- Tim Curry
- Shelley Fabares
- Bob Mackie
- James Burrows
- Rob Reiner
