Who is Alexis Rose in Schitt's Creek?

Show

Schitt's Creek

Played by

Annie Murphy

First episode

“Our Cup Runneth Over”Season 1, Episode 1, aired January 13, 2015

Role

Main cast

Network

CBC

Occupation

Socialite turned publicist

Show run

2015 to 2020Aired on Pop TV in the United States.

Also known as

Alexis, Alexis Claire Rose

Alexis Rose spent her rich years jetting around the world, dating celebrities, and getting into unlikely trouble in foreign countries. Played by Annie Murphy, she lands in Schitt's Creek as a self-absorbed party girl and leaves it as one of the show's most grown-up characters.

On Schitt's Creek, Alexis Rose's story runs through David Rose (Brother), Moira Rose (Mother), Johnny Rose (Father), Patrick Brewer (Brother-in-law), and Stevie Budd (Friend).

Who is Alexis Rose?

Alexis is the younger child of Johnny and Moira Rose and David's sister. She arrives in Schitt's Creek with little interest in the town or her family, ready to escape with the next wealthy boyfriend. Instead she ends up sharing a motel room with her brother and doing community service for a drunk driving conviction.

In the early seasons her love life centers on two locals: Mutt Schitt, the mayor's scruffy son, and Ted Mullens, the town's kind, pun-loving veterinarian. Ted gives her a job as his clinic's receptionist, and slowly Alexis starts to discover what she can build for herself.

Personality and comedy

Alexis talks with a breezy vocal fry and loose, fluttering hand gestures, and she can turn almost any conversation into an offhand story about some outrageous, often dangerous adventure she survived overseas. She often misreads the people around her, but she is also generous and quick to cheer someone on.

Her running battles with David are a highlight of the show. Annie Murphy has said her signature way of saying "Ew, David" crept in before she realized it, and the line became one of the show's most quoted and most merchandised. Behind the bickering, the siblings become each other's fiercest supporters.

Key storylines

In season three Alexis learns she never actually finished high school, so she goes back to class, with Jocelyn Schitt as her teacher, and graduates. In season four she finishes a college degree and starts Alexis Rose Communications, a public relations firm that starts with the motel and local businesses and keeps growing. In season five she auditions for the town's Cabaret by singing her own song, "A Little Bit Alexis," an audition that goes so badly the lead goes to Stevie.

Alexis and Ted reunite and build the first mature relationship of her life. When Ted is offered a permanent job in the Galapagos, they decide to break up so each can follow their own dream, a mutual and heartbreaking choice. In the series finale Alexis leaves Schitt's Creek for New York to grow her business.

Behind the scenes and legacy

Abby Elliott played Alexis in the original pilot presentation but could not continue when the CBC picked up the series. Annie Murphy, who had nearly given up on acting after two years without work, won the role, and she dyed her hair blonde after Eugene Levy pictured the character that way.

Critics often called Murphy the show's breakout star. She won the 2020 Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, part of the show's record sweep, and she released "A Little Bit Alexis" as a real single in 2019.

Alexis Rose: frequently asked questions

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