At the center of the beloved sitcom Schitt’s Creek is the Rose family, and at the center of Annie Murphy’s iconic portrayal of Alexis Rose are real-world inspirations that make hilarious sense. Schitt’s Creek follows the once-wealthy Rose family through misadventures in the titular town, which former CEO Johnny (Eugene Levy) once bought as a joke for his son, David (Dan Levy). Rounding out the family is Moira Rose (Catherine O’Hara), and together the four socialites-turned-motel-residents learn what it means to be a family.
The Canadian sitcom aired from 2015 to 2020 on CBC Television and grew in popularity over the course of its six-season run. The Rose family losing their fortune in the pilot affected each member at their core, setting the stage for much-needed character growth to occur on-screen in their frustratingly lovable new hometown. Their unique – and often ridiculous – quirks formed from lives of vapid luxury put each of them at odds with the various humble and silly residents of Schitt’s Creek, but it’s these memorable traits and their juxtaposition with salt-of-the-earth living that gave Schitt’s Creek much of its charm.
Throughout Schitt's Creek's run, Alexis Rose became a favorite character of the audience thanks to the people who inspired the character. Alexis’ particular set of quirks were inspired by celebrities such as Goldie Hawn, the Olsen twins, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, and of course, the Kardashians. While a young Goldie Hawn was the only comparison listed on the character breakdown Murphy initially received for the role, she used the reference as a jumping-off point to create further elements herself – such as Annie Murphy's trademark hand gesture for Alexis. As she stole bits and pieces from more modern It Girls, the Alexis Rose audiences fell in love with came to be.
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Murphy revealed in an interview (via KCRW) that Goldie Hawn’s effervescent quality allowed her to ensure Alexis didn’t come off as a one-note, despicably ditzy socialite. With this as a baseline, she took to watching clips of the Olsens, Lohan, Hilton, and the Kardashians to scavenge their characteristic accouterement. The major commonality she found and adopted for Alexis was their way of speaking: that lazy, airy vocal fry with plenty of upspeak to make every sentence sound almost like a question. She also noted the universal way they carried their handbags, which Murphy modified to create Alexis’s unceasingly limp wrists.
Though Schitt’s Creek ended after season 6, the show has stayed in the cultural zeitgeist because of its characters’ endlessly entertaining idiosyncrasies. While Alexis Rose owes her inception to real-life celebrities, it cannot be understated how much Murphy and the rest of the cast brought to their characters to set them apart from any on TV. Schitt’s Creek may have borrowed Alexis’s vocal fry and T-Rex wrists from the Kardashians, but her fullness of heart and depth of spirit belongs solely to Annie Murphy.