Trigger Warning: This article contains mentions of mental illness, suicide, and self-harm.
NEED TO KNOW
- Martin Short’s documentary Marty, Life Is Short, releases on Netflix on May 12, 2026.
- The actor breaks his silence on his daughter Katherine Short’s passing on February 23, dedicating his upcoming film to her and his late wife Nancy Dolman.
- Katherine Short battled mental health struggles and Nancy Dolman passed from ovarian cancer in 2010.
Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building star and comedian, opened up about how his upcoming documentary, Marty, Life Is Short, is a love letter to his late wife and daughter. The 2026 film, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, airs on Netflix on May 12 and documents the actor’s joy-filled philosophy to life and his comedy career.
In a CBS News interview promoting the film, Short breaks his silence on the passing of his daughter, Katherine Short, and how much her death has affected their family.
The 42-year-old was the eldest of three children adopted by Short and his wife, the late actress Nancy Dolman.
Law enforcement sources told TMZ that Katherine Short died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound and police arrived at her home in the Hollywood Hills after 6pm on Monday, February 23 (local time).
“It is with profound grief that we confirm the passing of Katherine Hartley Short,” Martin Short’s representative said in a statement. “The Short family is devastated by this loss, and asks for privacy at this time.”
“Katherine was beloved by all and will be remembered for the light and joy she brought into the world.”
Martin Short opens up about his daughter’s passing
On CBS News Sunday Morning on May 10, Martin Short opened up about the toll his daughter’s passing has had on their family.
“It’s been a nightmare for the family,” Short said. “But the understanding [is] that mental health and cancer, like my wife’s, are both diseases, and sometimes with diseases they are terminal. And my daughter fought for a long time with extreme mental health, borderline personality disorder, other things, and did the best she could until she couldn’t.”
Just as Short recounts his wife’s last words to her as “Martin, let me go,” he told CBS News that his daughter’s were the same.
“So, Nan’s last words to me were, ‘Martin, let me go.’ And what she was just saying [was], ‘Dad, let me go.'”
However, Short also described how he is dedicating the documentary to another person he loved, Catherine O’Hara, who died in January.
“There was no one more brilliant,” Short said of O’Hara. “There was no one sweeter. And there was no one funnier. And she, more than anyone on ‘SCTV,’ would sit behind the camera and give you suggestions. ‘Marty, try that.’ ‘Oh, okay.’ And then you always just did it.”
It’s safe to say this film will be equal parts heartbreaking and hilarious.
What is Martin Short’s documentary about?
While Marty, Life In Short documents the actor’s personal life, career, and his struggle with grief, it is first and foremost a dedication to those he loved, and those who shaped him over the years.
The film’s director, Lawrence Kasdan, who is a close family friend of the actor, opened up about how Short needed to be pushed into doing the film.
“It was not a natural instinct of his to want it; he’s not like that,” Kasdan said about the film. “I had to sell him on it. I had to lie to him, tell him how much I loved him and I would never hurt him.”
The documentary also features hours of home movies with the actor’s friends, including Tom Hanks, Kurt Russell and Steven Spielberg.
Katherine’s fight for mental health
Katherine Short was adopted by Martin and his late wife in 1983 and has two younger siblings, Oliver and Henry.
She was a social worker in Los Angeles and also worked with the charity Bring Change 2 Mind, which advocated for fighting against and destabilising mental health stigmas.
After graduating from New York University in 2006 with a bachelor’s in psychology and gender sexuality studies, Katherine then completed her masters in social work at the University of Southern California in 2010.
According to People, she worked at University of California’s Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital before going into private practice.
She also worked part-time at Amae Health, engaging in community outreach, family support groups, psychotherapy and peer support, showing her dedication to her profession and care for her community.
Katherine’s late mother’s battle with cancer
Nancy Dolman, Martin Short’s late wife, died of ovarian cancer in 2010.
In an interview with the Guardian at the time, the actor spoke of how difficult his wife’s passing was for his family.
“It’s been a tough two years for my children,” he said. “This is the thing of life that we live in denial about, that it will ever happen to us or our loved ones, and when it does you gain a little and you suffer a little. There’s no big surprise.”
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