‘Schitt’s Creek’: Annie Murphy Created Alexis Using Goldie Hawn
Schitt’s Creek is a wildly popular show that came out swinging. While the Rose family started off as total snobs who cared little for each other, as the show progressed, the family grew closer together. There were some surprising moments that were both touching and completely hysterical at the same time.
Much of the show’s popularity wouldn’t have been possible without Annie Murphy. She stars as Alexis Claire Rose and brought a little something extra to the cast, and her sense of comedic timing was absolute perfection. One of the favorite things fan love about her character was Murphy’s accent, and according to CBC, the way she picked up the accent is almost as hilarious as her character.
What is Schitt’s Creek about?
As the name of the show implies, Schitt’s Creek is a comedy show produced by CBC. It’s about the Rose family, who are based loosely off the Kardashians. The idea that spawned the show was ‘what would happen if a rich family suddenly lost their fortune?’
That’s exactly what happens to the Rose family, and they’re forced to move to a town known as Schitt’s Creek, that they once bought on a whim. It’s a rough fall from prosperity, and the humor really comes alive as the Rose family tries to live within their means.
The show has garnered a lot of attention since it premiered in 2015, and it’s really racked in the rewards. According to CBC: “The show is now an 18-time Canadian Screen Award winner, a four-time Emmy nominee, has twice been nominated for a Critics’ Choice Award for best comedy series and has garnered glowing reviews from media around the world. This month, it pulled in a record-breaking 26 Canadian Screen Award 2020 nominations.”
For five seasons, Schitt’s Creek has been leaving fans in tears as they laughed at the Rose family’s adventures, but sadly, it is coming to an end. The sixth season is also the final one, and fans are already mourning.
Who is Annie Murphy?
Murphy was a little known actress when she auditioned to play Alexis Rose and Stevie on Schitt’s Creek. She had actually decided to give up acting the day before her audition, so we can all be glad that she was added to the cast. Abby Elliot was originally supposed to play the character of Alexis, but she had another engagement and had to give up the role.
So who is Annie Murphy when she’s not playing Alexis Rose? Is she as bratty as the character she plays?
As it turns out, Murphy is nothing like Alexis Rose. She is married to Canadian alt-rocker Menno Versteeg, and enjoys long walks through Toronto and reading books. She also doesn’t like talking about herself that much. So how exactly did she develop the characteristics of Alexis that fans adore so much?
Who knew reality TV was so useful?
Murphy isn’t a fan of reality TV, but she still found inspiration from it. In an interview with Vulture, Murphy stated: “Ah, that nasty old vocal fry. I couldn’t bring myself to watch full episodes of things, so I watched a lot of YouTube clips of certain reality shows about certain rich famous people. I popped my eyelids open with toothpicks and watched and watched and watched. It’s a level of comedy where it’s so beautifully unnatural and I had to bring that fry to the character.”
Her speech randomly emphasizes words, stops in the middle of a sentence, and picks right back up. Murphy also has a lot of hand motions when she speaks that seems to add to the role she plays. Her character, Alexis Rose, is known for being spoiled, and aloof.
But the real inspiration behind Alexis is Goldie Hawn. Murphy told Variety: “In the breakdown for the audition, it did say “a blonde socialite.” But it referenced a young Goldie Hawn, which I found to be really interesting because it would have been such an easy thing to be an Olsen twin or a Kardashian. I really latched onto that because a young Goldie Hawn was bubbly and bright and maybe a bit frivolous, but she was also a really cool, interesting, smart woman. She had layers to her.”
Much of her time before her family became poor was actually spent traveling the world and getting into one mess after another. Once her family lost their fortune, she began to realize that she has been wasting her life, such as not getting her high school diploma.
So while juggling several different relationships, Alexis not only gets her high school degree but also goes to college. As the series progresses, Murphy is able to flawlessly portray the growth of a young, spoiled woman who doesn’t seem to care about anyone, to a woman who opens a public relations company, called Alexis Rose Communications.
