# Catherine Mary Stewart
**Catherine Mary Stewart** (born Catherine Mary Nursall, 1959) is a Canadian actress whose career spans film, television, and stage across more than four decades, best known for her lead roles in the 1980s cult films *The Last Starfighter*, *[Night of the Comet](https://www.edgepedia.org/night-of-the-comet)*, and *Weekend at Bernie's*, and for her role as Kayla Brady on the soap opera *Days of Our Lives*.[1](https://www.guitarthrills.com/the-enduring-power-of-cult-classics-catherine-mary-stewart/) • [2](https://crypticrock.com/interview-catherine-mary-stewart/) Her films found much of their audience after theatrical release, through home video and repeated screening, and have sustained fan communities for decades.[3](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catherine-mary-stewart/id1677632635?i=1000666006324)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | Catherine Mary Nursall, 1959, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada[1](https://www.guitarthrills.com/the-enduring-power-of-cult-classics-catherine-mary-stewart/) |
| Film debut | *The Apple* (1980), a science fiction musical; she was cast as the lead female, Bibi, from an open dance audition in London[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) |
| Signature 1980s films | *The Last Starfighter* and *Night of the Comet* (both 1984), *Mischief* (1985), *Weekend at Bernie's* (1989)[2](https://crypticrock.com/interview-catherine-mary-stewart/) |
| Television | Kayla Brady on *Days of Our Lives*; guest roles on *White Collar* and *Knight Rider*[5](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/about) • [4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) |
| Marriages | Married John Findlater (an actor and photographer) in September 1983, divorced 1985; married producer Richard Allerton[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/stewart-catherine-mary-1959) |
| Career scale | More than 30 years and over 50 productions across England, Canada, and the United States, per IMDb; her own site describes over 40 years as a performer[7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0829252/) • [5](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/about) |
| Recent work | Co-director of the feature *Loose Ends* and director of the stage show *Sasha Graham's Ghost Stories and Tarot*, staged at the 2026 Edinburgh Fringe Festival[8](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/) |
## Early life and training
Stewart was born in Edmonton, Alberta, to an academic family: her father was a marine biologist and her mother a physiologist.[9](https://www.peek-a-boo-magazine.be/en/interviews/catherine-mary-stewart-actress/) She began her performance training as a dancer at Edmonton's Marr-Mac school and, at 18, moved to London, England, to study.[10](https://edifyedmonton.com/people/profiles/style-qa-girls-just-want-to-have-fun/) In interviews she has described an early resistance to acting: she had taken ballet as a young girl and given it up, but returned to dance through a jazz class at 14, and it was dance that eventually led her into professional acting.[11](https://www.blackgate.com/2011/01/20/goth-chick-news-13-questions-for-catherine-mary-stewart/)
Her entry into film came by chance. Walking to dance class in London, she followed fellow students to an open audition for a movie musical, where around 200 candidates were auditioned under choreographer [Nigel Lythgoe](https://www.edgepedia.org/nigel-lythgoe). The director pulled her from the group, tested her acting and singing on the spot, and cast her.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html)
## Film debut and early roles
Her first film was *The Apple* (1980), a science fiction musical, in which she played the lead female role of Bibi.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) After the shoot she returned to Edmonton and was cast in the comedic ski movie *Powder Heads*, then took a small role in [Sylvester Stallone](https://www.edgepedia.org/sylvester-stallone)'s *[Nighthawks](https://www.edgepedia.org/nighthawks-1981-film)* back in London before deciding to try Hollywood, where it took nearly a year to land an agent and, after that, the role of Kayla.[11](https://www.blackgate.com/2011/01/20/goth-chick-news-13-questions-for-catherine-mary-stewart/)
## The soap opera and the 1980s films
Stewart's major television break was the role of Kayla Brady on *Days of Our Lives*, which she describes as the point where her career was catapulted to a new level; she has called soap work a demanding training ground, saying she never worked harder than she did on soaps.[5](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/about) • [4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html)
In 1984 she appeared in two science fiction features that became her defining cult roles. In *The Last Starfighter* she played Maggie, opposite Lance Guest, Dan O'Herlihy, and Robert Preston; the film's digital effects programs were, as she learned at a 25th anniversary screening, foundational for later computer-generated effects, and the role was her first big American movie role.[11](https://www.blackgate.com/2011/01/20/goth-chick-news-13-questions-for-catherine-mary-stewart/) *The Last Starfighter* was the last movie Robert Preston appeared in before his death in 1987.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) In *Night of the Comet* she played Regina (Reggie), one of two sisters who survive a comet's passage over Los Angeles and fight the undead; she has highlighted the film's female protagonists, who carry the entire movie, as unusual for its time.[12](https://www.retroinjection.com/post/we-interview-catherine-mary-stewart-heroine-of-the-last-starfighter) • [9](https://www.peek-a-boo-magazine.be/en/interviews/catherine-mary-stewart-actress/)
Neither film was a large theatrical success at release: *Night of the Comet* had little money for distribution or advertising and received what she describes as a lukewarm initial response, reaching its audience later.[9](https://www.peek-a-boo-magazine.be/en/interviews/catherine-mary-stewart-actress/) She continued with the teen comedy *Mischief* (1985), the post-apocalyptic *World Gone Wild* (with [Bruce Dern](https://www.edgepedia.org/bruce-dern), Michael Pare, and [Adam Ant](https://www.edgepedia.org/adam-ant)), the western spoof *Dudes* directed by [Penelope Spheeris](https://www.edgepedia.org/penelope-spheeris), and the comedy *Weekend at Bernie's* (1989), in which she played the female lead.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) • [13](https://trainwreckdsociety.com/2019/02/01/catherine-stewart-interview/) • [2](https://crypticrock.com/interview-catherine-mary-stewart/)
## Cult status and later career
The three 1980s titles that anchor her reputation, *Night of the Comet*, *The Last Starfighter*, and *Weekend at Bernie's*, have all achieved cult followings, sustained by home video, midnight screenings (including showings of *The Apple* at [Lincoln Center](https://www.edgepedia.org/lincoln-center)), fan conventions, and cast reunions such as a *Weekend at Bernie's* reunion at Rhode Island Comic Con in 2013.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) She has attributed the endurance of these films to the home video market, where they found their audiences and built fan communities over the years.[3](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catherine-mary-stewart/id1677632635?i=1000666006324)
Her later work includes guest appearances on series such as *White Collar* and *Knight Rider*, and the television movie *The Husband She Met Online*.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) • [12](https://www.retroinjection.com/post/we-interview-catherine-mary-stewart-heroine-of-the-last-starfighter) Her filmography on IMDb spans more than 50 productions in England, Canada, and the United States.[7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0829252/)
## Move into directing and current projects
**Behind the camera.** In recent years Stewart has shifted toward writing, producing, and directing. She wrote, produced, and directed an original short film, *A Walk to Remember*, and has been developing the feature *Cortes Story*, a mother/daughter narrative, with writing partner Matthew Corolis and producer Michael Nolin.[5](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/about) Her website lists her as "director. actor. writer. producer." and reports that she co-directed *Loose Ends*, a full-length feature sequel to Bob Heckman's Friday the 13th fan film *Victim No More*, and is directing *Sasha Graham's Ghost Stories and Tarot*, a one-woman stage show with tarot author and horror actress Sasha Graham, headed to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August 2026.[8](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/)
The franchise she is associated with has also extended into comics: on July 1, 2026, Mad Cave Studios released the first issue of a *The Last Starfighter* comic series continuing the 1984 film, with Maggie returning to the story, and issues appearing monthly through December 2026.[14](https://www.fortressofsolitude.co.za/catherine-mary-stewart-last-starfighter-actress-whatever-happened-2026/)
## Personal life
She married John Findlater, an actor and photographer, in September 1983; the marriage ended in divorce in 1985.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/stewart-catherine-mary-1959) She has been married to producer Richard Allerton since 1992 and has two children, Hanna and Connor McKay.[4](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html) • [6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/stewart-catherine-mary-1959) Her brother Alan Nursall hosts the segment "The Alan Nursall Experience" on the Canadian science program *Daily Planet* and has served as president and CEO of TELUS World of Science in Edmonton.[9](https://www.peek-a-boo-magazine.be/en/interviews/catherine-mary-stewart-actress/)
## References
1. [The Enduring Power of Cult Classics – Catherine Mary Stewart, Guitar Thrills Magazine](https://www.guitarthrills.com/the-enduring-power-of-cult-classics-catherine-mary-stewart/)
2. [Interview – Catherine Mary Stewart, Cryptic Rock](https://crypticrock.com/interview-catherine-mary-stewart/)
3. [Catherine Mary Stewart – Celebrity Interviews LIVE From The Grotto With Greg Hanna, Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catherine-mary-stewart/id1677632635?i=1000666006324)
4. [Catherine Mary Stewart Talks with the Café About Her Cult Film Classics, Dernzies, and a Kiss from Robert Preston, Classic Film and TV Café](https://www.classicfilmtvcafe.com/2014/01/catherine-mary-stewart-talks-with-cafe.html)
5. [About | Catherine Mary Stewart (official site)](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/about)
6. [Stewart, Catherine Mary 1959– , Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/stewart-catherine-mary-1959)
7. [Catherine Mary Stewart, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0829252/)
8. [Home | Catherine Mary Stewart (official site)](https://www.catherinemarystewart.com/)
9. [Catherine Mary Stewart (Actress) – interview, Peek-A-Boo Magazine](https://www.peek-a-boo-magazine.be/en/interviews/catherine-mary-stewart-actress/)
10. [Style Q&A: Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Edify Edmonton](https://edifyedmonton.com/people/profiles/style-qa-girls-just-want-to-have-fun/)
11. [Goth Chick News: 13 Questions for Catherine Mary Stewart, Black Gate](https://www.blackgate.com/2011/01/20/goth-chick-news-13-questions-for-catherine-mary-stewart/)
12. [We Interview Catherine Mary Stewart, Heroine of "The Last Starfighter," Retro Injection](https://www.retroinjection.com/post/we-interview-catherine-mary-stewart-heroine-of-the-last-starfighter)
13. [Catherine Mary Stewart [Interview], Trainwreck'd Society](https://trainwreckdsociety.com/2019/02/01/catherine-stewart-interview/)
14. [Catherine Mary Stewart Now: Maggie Returns in Comics, Fortress of Solitude](https://www.fortressofsolitude.co.za/catherine-mary-stewart-last-starfighter-actress-whatever-happened-2026/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › Canadian actors › Surnames R to S*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license