Annie Murphy had $3 in her bank account when she was called to audition for the role as Alexis Rose, the diva daughter of the socialite-turned-bankrupt family at the center of "Schitt's Creek," she says.
She was also precariously close to calling her acting career quits. She hadn't worked in nearly two years and had just blown a previous audition, Murphy explained on "The Kelly Clarkson Show."
And, to make matters worse, her apartment had burned down.
"I had just found myself crying in the Pacific Ocean, a very snotty cry, and the universe was like, 'Don't do this anymore. This is not for you," Murphy said on the show.
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Then, only two days later, Eugene and Dan Levy came calling. The dad-and-son duo, who co-created and played central roles in the show, originally gave the part for Alexis Rose to actress and comedian Abby Elliott, but Murphy ascended to the job after Elliott left the show for another gig.
"Thank God she was a successful actress who had other things to do," Murphy told Marie Claire. "I owe my career to Abby's career."
"Schitt's Creek" flew under the radar when it was first launched in 2015 on Pop TV in the U.S. and CBC in Canada, but the show later launched a deal with Netflix in 2017. Pop TV estimates that over four million people watched at least some of the show's previous season on its channel, and it received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for best comedy in 2019.
"Schitt's Creek" also launched Murphy to comedic stardom. Popular catchphrases from her self-absorbed yet likable character Alexis Rose, like "Ew, David" and "Love that journey for me," have been sold on stickers and T-shirts and have been at the center of numerous memes.
Even one of her comedic jingles from the show, "A Little Bit Alexis," was added to iTunes and nominated for a Dorian Award for TV musical performance of the year, alongside Lizzo and Michelle Williams.
And now that the show is in its sixth and final season, Murphy told Marie Claire she plans to end her journey almost exactly how she started it — by heading to Los Angeles to search for a new role.
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