The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) just unveiled its final group of honourees for its 2025 TIFF Tribute Awards, with Toronto-born actress Catherine O’Hara being the recipient of the TIFF Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award.
The 71-year-old’s inspirational pop culture career has spanned five decades, from her groundbreaking work on SCTV to iconic roles in Beetlejuice, Home Alone, and, more recently, as the over-the-top matriarch Moira Rose on the hit series Schitt’s Creek.
O’Hara attended TIFF in previous years, promoting films like For Your Consideration (TIFF ’06), Penelope (TIFF ’06), The Right Kind of Wrong (TIFF ’13) and The Wild Robot (TIFF ’24).
This year, she’s starring in Seth Rogen’s satiric film The Studio (2025) about a newly appointed head of a movie studio (Rogen) who struggles to juggle corporate demands with creative ambitions (O’Hara plays Patty Leigh, the former studio head).
The Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award was introduced in 2023 and recognizes Canadians in the film industry who have made a global impact with their careers (past recipients include David Cronenberg (2024) and Shawn Levy (2023)).
“The 2025 Tribute Award honourees represent the very best of what cinema can achieve,” Cameron Bailey, CEO of TIFF, said in a recent statement, adding that this year’s honourees have created work that moves, challenges, and expands audiences into understanding the human experience. “Their artistry and commitment to storytelling cross borders and cultures, inspiring audiences everywhere.”
O’Hara will be celebrated alongside six other internationally acclaimed stars:
- Idris Elba (TIFF Tribute Award in Impact Media, presented by Anne-Marie Canning): Honoured for his on-screen versatility, global impact and advocacy through the Elba Hope Foundation.
- Kazu Hiro (TIFF Variety Artisan Award): A prosthetic makeup designer and contemporary hyperrealist sculptor behind transformations in the Darkest Hour, Bombshell and The Smashing Machine.
- Nina Hoss (TIFF Tribute Performer Award): She’s known for her emotionally resonant portrayals of complex women! This year, she’s heading to TIFF for the world premiere of Hedda, Nia DaCosta’s modern reimagining of Ibsen’s classic (she stars as Eileen Lovborg).
- Channing Tatum (TIFF Tribute Performer Award, presented by Cineplex): The Magic Mike alumnus stars in Derek Cianfrance’s Roofman, premiering September 6.
- Jafar Panahi (TIFF Special Tribute Award): The Iranian film director returns with Palme d’Or winner It Was Just an Accident, his first film following his most recent prison sentence.
- Zacharias Kunuk (TIFF Special Tribute Award): The Inuk filmmaker returns to TIFF with Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband), his latest imagining of ancient Inuit stories.
The 50th edition of TIFF runs Sept 4-14, 2025. Click here for more A-listers you’ll likely spot on the red carpet this year.
