Credit: Inside the Magic One of the most popular Canadian shows to ever storm the world was Schitt’s Creek. Starring Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara, this small-town comedy has raked in countless Emmys and multiple awards, with season after season churning out to be a smash hit. Now, the franchise as a whole has been slightly jaded after one of the main cast members attacked one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars.
Schitt’s Creek is a Canadian television sitcom created by Dan and Eugene Levy. It originally aired on CBC Television, spanning a total of 80 episodes across six seasons, then found its way to Netflix, where an American audience was cultivated.
Produced by Not a Real Company Productions, the show revolves around the challenges faced by the once-wealthy Rose family. They are compelled to relocate to Schitt’s Creek, a small town they had previously purchased as a jest.
Now, residing in a motel, Johnny Rose (Eugene Levy) and Moira Rose (Catherine O’Hara), along with their adult children, David (Dan Levy) and Alexis (Annie Murphy), must navigate life without their previous wealth and adapt to living with each other.
The inspiration for the series came from Dan Levy’s curiosity about how affluent families, often depicted in American reality television, would cope if they suddenly lost all their wealth.
Award Winning Rampage
The series has garnered numerous awards, as we mentioned earlier, including two ACTRA Awards and 18 Canadian Screen Awards. Notably, it holds the distinction of being the first Canadian comedy series nominated for a Critics’ Choice Television Award in the Best Comedy Series category.
Additionally, it received two nominations for Screen Actors Guild Awards, encompassing Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. It also accumulated an impressive total of 19 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including a nod for Outstanding Comedy Series.
At the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards, the series’ final season achieved a remarkable feat by sweeping all seven major comedy awards.
This included recognition in categories such as Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing, and Outstanding Directing, the latter shared by Dan Levy and Andrew Cividino. Furthermore, it established a record by securing all four major acting categories (lead actor/actress and supporting actor/actress) for O’Hara, Murphy, and both Levy’s.
Simultaneously, the series marked a historic moment by setting a new record for the most Emmy wins by a comedy series in a single season.
Schitt’s Creek Scandal
Most recently, even though the show has been over for quite some time, Schitt’s Creek began making headlines once again. Emily Hampshire plays Stevie Bud, one of the employees at the Rosebud Motel, where our riches-to-rags family ends up living throughout the series. While Stevie seems to be a 90’s grunge angered small-town girl, her deadpan comedy works perfectly with David’s personality, joining the two characters together as best friends.
Stevie is one of the lead characters in the show, appearing in nearly every episode, having her own prominent plot lines, and becoming a fan favorite.
The Montreal-born actress recently put Schitt’s Creek back into media circulation following her “insensitive” Halloween costume of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.
The photos were posted then deleted on social media. Variety reported, “The actor sported fake tattoos as Depp and appeared to wear a suit that closely resembled one that the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star wore during his highly-publicized 2022 libel trial against Heard.”
“I want to address what is one of the most thoughtless, insensitive, and ignorant things I’ve ever done,” Emily wrote in an apology post on Instagram. “For Halloween, I stupidly thought it would be funny to dress as Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. I am deeply sorry and ashamed for putting something that awful out in the universe.”
“Domestic abuse is never, ever funny,” Hampshire added. “These are real issues with real people and I REALLY regret my actions. In the future I will do better. I’m so sorry.”
As one might imagine, the costume, which made light of abuse, received heavy backlash against the actress.
While Emily deleted the photo, others did save the images before she was able to scrub the internet of them.
Abatomi Oyeleye posted the costumes, noting, “Emily Hampshire is expressing regret over her Halloween costume this year. The “Schitt’s Creek” star took to Instagram Wednesday to apologize for participating in dressing up as feuding exes Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.”
Emily Hampshire is expressing regret over her Halloween costume this year.
The “Schitt’s Creek” star took to Instagram Wednesday to apologize for participating in dressing up as feuding exes Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. pic.twitter.com/FA8qPjr5Wj
— Abayomi Oyeleye (@abayomi75) November 2, 2023
In the photo, we can see Emily and her friend dressed as Depp and Heard did at their trial. We also can see a bottle of wine pictured, referencing Heard’s allegations of Depp’s alcoholism and a giant fake poop, referring to when Depp revealed Amber left poop in his bed on purpose.
In recent years, Johnny Depp has been under the spotlight not only for his remarkable contributions to film but also due to the challenges in his personal life. If you’ve been following Inside the Magic for some time, you’re likely familiar with our extensive coverage of the legal battle between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. This high-profile defamation lawsuit took place in Fairfax, Virginia and garnered attention worldwide.
In this legal dispute, Depp was seeking $50 million in damages from his ex-wife, Amber Heard, following a 2018 op-ed she authored in which she detailed her alleged experience as a victim of domestic abuse and her journey to survival. Simultaneously, Heard counterclaimed for $100 million against the renowned actor known for his role in Corpse Bride.
This civil case followed Depp’s prior legal setback in November 2020, involving a libel lawsuit that resulted in him losing his leading roles in both The Walt Disney Company’s Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and Warner Bros.’ Fantastic Beasts, a Harry Potter spinoff series.
More recently, it was reported that Craig Mazin, the showrunner of HBO’s popular series The Last of Us, had pitched an idea for a sixth Pirates of the Caribbean movie, rumored to be a reboot. Mazin expressed his initial surprise at the idea’s acceptance, stating, “We pitched it and thought there’s no way they’re buying it, it’s too weird. And they did! And then he wrote a fantastic script, and the strike happened, and everyone’s waiting around.”
With the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, and the union rules forbidding actors to dress as characters from ongoing films and series, the costume selection was limited this year, however, many think that Hampshire did cross a line.
In terms of Emily and her future with Schitt’s Creek, Dan Levy was considering making a movie or rebooting the franchise. Out reported Dan saying, “It’s something that we know there’s demand and interest for it, really. It’s something that I know Dan and Eugene [Levy] are considering all the time, and I think it’s going to be a timing thing.” He continued, “The fear is: does it tarnish the legacy to go back and revisit them in the way that maybe the Entourage movie did?”
If there is a reboot of any kind, it is highly likely Emily will return to the franchise after her six-season triumph.
Do you think Emily’s Johnny Depp costume was funny or crossed a line?