Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara were the visible signs of the early promotion Schitt's Creek had in the United States. Having Levy and O'Hara out there made sense since SCTV and the Christopher Guest films were well-known in the United States.
The U.S. promotion for the final season of Schitt's Creek features Eugene and Dan Levy, O'Hara, and Annie Murphy. The Levy father-son duo got to guest host Ellen where O'Hara and Murphy were guests on the episode. The four of them were featured together on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and Watch What Happens Live.
Dan did a separate appearance on the Late Show with James Corden while Annie was on The Kelly Clarkson Show where Clarkson and Murphy did a version of A Little Bit Alexis.
O'Hara shared the story of how she met Gilda Radner because O'Hara's brother Marcus was dating Radner. O'Hara started waitressing at Second City in Toronto before moving up to the stage. Murphy told the story about how in the provisional pilot, Abby Elliott, daughter of Chris Elliott of Schitt's Creek, played Alexis. Murphy said Elliott was too busy to be in the show, making way for Murphy to take the role.
One of the many legacies of Schitt's Creek is bringing attention to great Canadian actors. Chris Elliott is American but the rest of the cast is Canadian. You know these actors on Schitt's Creek. Let's take a peek into their TV and film catalogues.
Emily Hampshire (Stevie Budd) I am very familiar with several films that feature Hampshire: Good Neighbours; My Awkward Sexual Adventure; The Trotsky; All the Wrong Reasons; Cosmopolis; The Life Before This (with Catherine O'Hara); and The Death and Life of John F. Donovan.
You should see Hampshire display her range well past Stevie Budd, especially in My Awkward Sexual Adventure and All the Wrong Reasons. She is also great at making a difference in smaller roles such as Cosmopolis and The Death and Life of John F. Donovan.
Dustin Milligan (Ted Mullens) is likely known more in American productions than Canadian productions. Milligan was on X Company for its first 2 seasons as advertising expert Tom Cummings. Filming primarily in Hungary proved for some logistical issues for Milligan as he couldn't do too much on Schitt's Creek while halfway across the world. Évelyne Brochu ran into similar issues trying to juggle her role as Delphine Cormier on Orphan Black.
Karen Robinson (Ronnie Lee) might be as well known for her theatrical work. Her TV work includes Canadian shows such as King; The Line, Shoot the Messenger, Mary Kills People, Forgive Me, and Frankie Drake Mysteries. Robinson won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Performance in a Guest Role in a Drama Series in 2019 for her role in Season 2 of Mary Kills People. Robinson can also be seen in the Canadian film Love, Sex and Eating the Bones that won Best Canadian First Feature Film at the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival.
Jennifer Robertson (Jocelyn Schitt) has been a writer and actor. She is best known in Canada for her role as a writer/actor on Comedy Inc., a sketch comedy series. Robertson has had recurring roles on Canadian TV shows such as Degrassi: The Next Generation; Wingin' It; Little Mosque on the Prairie; and Mr. D. Like Milligan, Robertson is well known on American shows.
Sarah Levy (Twyla Sands) is relatively new based on the number of credits. You might remember her from the short-lived TV show Working the Engels, a Canadian-American co-production.
Noah Reid (Patrick Brewer) doubles as a musician and actor. Reid started on the show in Season 3 as David's business partner and later relationship partner. Reid is best known for the leading role in Score: A Hockey Musical, the opening night film at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival. He was also seen in Canadian films such as People Hold On and Cardinals.
Tim Rozon (Mutt Schitt) hasn't been seen in quite awhile in Schitt's Creek. He was Alexis' love interest in the first 2 seasons of the show. Rozon has been plenty busy as Doc Holliday on Wynonna Earp. You may have seen him in recurring roles on Canadian shows such as Lost Girl and Being Human. In an non-acting role, Rozon is co-owner of the Garde Manger restaurant with Canadian chef Chuck Hughes.
John Hemphill (Bob Currie) and Robin Duke (Wendy Kurtz) were SCTV vets. Hemphill was a writer and played minor characters on the show. Hemphill was nominated for a Gemini award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Program in 1995 and a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2018. Duke replaced O'Hara on SCTV in 1980 and Saturday Night Live in 1981. O'Hara lasted less than a day as a cast member on Saturday Night Live.
Rizwan Manji (Ray Butani) has made his mark much more in the United States than Canada. He is currently playing Reverend Jax on Perfect Harmony on NBC. Like Sarah Levy, he also guest starred on Working the Engels.
Ennis Esmer (Emir Kaplan) played a travel blogger and brief love interest for Stevie Budd in Season 5. You likely remember Esmer from Canadian TV shows such as Private Eyes and perhaps from Billable Hours.
You might recognise Esmer from Canadian films such as Clara, Big News from Grand Rock, How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town, and YPF.
Godspell Toronto production was a big break for a lot of great Canadian talent
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CanadianCrossing.com Canadian TV coverage
CanadianCrossing.com CBC coverage
CanadianCrossing.com television coverage
A special shout out to some single-episode wonders and the year they appeared on Schitt's Creek.
François Arnaud (2017) films such as J'ai tué ma mère and Jean of the Joneses; TV shows such as X Company
Linda Thorson (2019) mostly non-Canadian productions, especially One Life to Live and, of course, The Avengers
Aaron Poole (2015) best known for Strange Empire as well as films such as Cas & Dylan and Mary Goes Round
Stacey Farber (2018) known for her TV work that includes 18 to Life, Degrassi: The Next Generation, and Saving Hope
Victor Garber (2020) known for his TV work on Alias, film work on Argo, and was Jesus in the famous Canadian production of Godspell
Jennifer Irwin (2015) known mostly for her American TV work and Canadian TV shows such as Slings & Arrows, Michael: Every Day, and Working the Engels
Rob Stewart (2018) Known on both sides of the border for Tropical Heat (Sweating Bullets in the U.S.) and Killjoys and stars as himself in Slaughter Nick for President
Saul Rubinek (2020) known for his U.S. film work that includes Against All Odds, Wall Street, The Bonfire of the Vanities, True Romance, and Unforgiven as well as a 5-time Genie Award nominee, winning Best Supporting Actor for Ticket to Heaven
Genelle Williams (2020) known for her Canadian TV work that includes Degrassi: The Next Generation, Radio Free Roscoe, and The Latest Buzz
Henry Czerny (2020) is known for Canadian films such as Remember and The Other Half and American films such as The Ice Storm
Paul Shaffer (2018) musician and actor Saturday Night Live; Late Night with David Letterman; Late Show with David Letterman as well as Godspell on stage with Eugene Levy in Toronto.
Kristian Bruun (2015) appeared as a gas station attendant in a scene that was cut. He still gets a credit for that episode. Known for Orphan Black and Murdoch Mysteries as well as numerous Canadian films.
The characters played by Farber and Irwin could theoretically return in a wedding scene on Tuesday.
The series finale of Schitt's Creek airs April 7 on CBC at 8 p.m. local time and Pop TV, Comedy Central, and Logo at 8 p.m. Eastern.
video and photo credit: YouTube/Schitt's Creek
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