‘One of the greatest comic talents’: tributes paid to actor Catherine O’Hara

Tributes have poured in from the world of showbiz and politics for Catherine O’Hara, with the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, and Schitt’s Creek’s co-creator Dan Levy mourning the loss of a “legend” after the actor died at the age of 71.O’Hara, who won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her role in the TV comedy series, died on Friday at her home in Los Angeles after a brief illness, according to her agency, CAA.The Canadian-American actor was also known for roles in Home Alone and the Beetlejuice films. In a post on Instagram, Levy said he would “cherish every funny memory I was fortunate enough to make with her”.He added: “What a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O’Hara’s brilliance for all those years

From Nouvelle Vague to Mock the Week: your complete entertainment guide to the week ahead

Nouvelle VagueOut now Never bet against Richard Linklater: the veteran director (Dazed and Confused, Boyhood) loves turning his hand to different genres, and his latest is a typically mellow dramatisation of the period in French film history that saw the likes of Jean-Luc Godard, François Truffaut and Claude Chabrol shake off their lives as critics and become bona fide film legends.Is This Thing On?Out nowIt sounds like an improbable standup bit in itself, but no: here we have a Hollywood comedy inspired by the life of the UK’s own John Bishop. Will Arnett plays the man in a troubled marriage who decides to give open mic a go and is a surprise hit, while Laura Dern plays his wife. Directed by Bradley Cooper (yes, the Bradley Cooper).PrimateOut nowCome on now, people: chimpanzees are unsuitable enough as pets to start with

Catherine O’Hara managed to make difficult characters utterly delightful

One of the later and less beloved Christopher Guest comedies featuring his troupe of peerless, often SCTV-related improvisers is For Your Consideration, a medium-funny savaging of Hollywood’s feverish awards-season prestige campaigning.The film’s unquestionable highlight is Catherine O’Hara, playing an actor who gets a whisper of awards buzz for a schlocky, still-filming drama called Home for Purim, and slowly loses her mind with the knowledge that she could maybe, possibly be recognized by her peers. O’Hara, known for her distinctively brassy yet malleable trill of her voice and her frequently red hair, peels back her performer’s bravado to expose the frenzied need beneath it. She somehow plays the outsized beneath the regular-sized, as her Marilyn Hack goes from plugging-away workhorse to desperate striver. Unsurprisingly, O’Hara briefly generated awards buzz of her own for playing this part; even less surprisingly, an Oscar nomination was not forthcoming

Catherine O’Hara, actor known for Home Alone and Schitt’s Creek, dies aged 71

Catherine O’Hara, actor known for Schitt’s Creek, Home Alone and Best in Show, has died at the age of 71.Her manager confirmed the news to Variety. She died after a brief illness.O’Hara started her comedy career in the 1970s and helped to create the Canadian sketch show SCTV. She broke into film in the 1980s with her first big-screen credit in the romantic comedy Nothing Personal with Donald Sutherland, and in 1985 she had a role in Martin Scorsese’s black comedy After Hours

Colbert on Springsteen’s anti-ICE song: ‘Do you know how hard it is to rhyme with Minneapolis?’

Late-night hosts spoke about Bruce Springsteen’s anti-ICE song and Donald Trump’s repeated attacks on Ilhan Omar.On The Late Show, Stephen Colbert spoke about Trump’s “plunging popularity over his goons’ brutality”, which has reportedly left him unsettled and backed into a corner, according to reports.Colbert said that was the most dangerous place for him to be because “if you startle him when he’s cornered, he’ll inflate his neck pouch”.The “incredibly unpopular mass deportations” have also led Bruce Springsteen to write a fiery anti-ICE song called Streets of Minneapolis.The much-loved musician previously wrote a song about the Aids crisis called Streets of Philadelphia

Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù: ’If the west doesn’t say a film is good, that doesn’t mean it’s no good’

When Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù becomes animated during conversation, his speaking voice – ordinarily a sort of polished inner-city London dialect – dances into a smooth Nigerian accent. As it happens, his shoulders ease, his eyes smile, he is totally relaxed. If it is true that we become the most distilled versions of ourselves when we are at our most comfortable, then it is clear here that the very essence of Dìrísù’s personhood is a Nigerian man.The opportunity to nurture his Nigerian identity was a significant factor in Dìrísù’s decision to take on his latest film, the Bafta-nominated My Father’s Shadow. The entire project – on which he serves both as lead actor and executive producer – was shot on location in Lagos, the country’s former capital city, over an eight-week period in early 2024