Who is Stevie Budd in Schitt's Creek?

Show

Schitt's Creek

Played by

Emily Hampshire

First episode

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

Role

Main cast

Network

CBC

Occupation

Motel clerk, then Rosebud Motel owner

Show run

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

Also known as

Stevie

Stevie Budd is working the front desk, bored out of her mind, when the formerly rich Rose family checks into her motel. Played by Emily Hampshire, she starts out as the Roses' sarcastic host and ends the series as David's best friend, Johnny's partner, and a surprise musical theater star.

On Schitt's Creek, Stevie Budd's story runs through David Rose (Best Friend), Johnny Rose (Business Partner), Roland Schitt (Business Partner), Moira Rose (Cabaret Director), and Patrick Brewer (Friend).

Who is Stevie Budd?

Stevie is a lifelong Schitt's Creek local who has heard every piece of town gossip twice. When the Roses arrive she is the motel's only employee, and she meets their complaints with a flat stare and a dry joke. She has little to do with her own relatives, whom she describes as a bunch of small-time crooks.

David is the first person in years who shares her outsider sense of humor, and their friendship becomes one of the show's anchors. Over six seasons Stevie goes from drifting through her days to owning and helping run a growing business, and she becomes, in all but name, a member of the Rose family.

Personality and comedy

Stevie's comedy is all understatement. She dresses in flannel and worn jeans, admits she is no good at faking sincerity, and hears the word rude as praise. She is the perfect partner for David's dramatics, puncturing his panic with a single line.

The show gradually lets her nerves show, too. Stevie is unsure of herself and afraid of wanting things, and much of her arc is about learning to take chances. Johnny becomes a kind of father figure for her, offering the encouragement her own family never did.

Key storylines

In season one Stevie and David sleep together, then decide they work better as friends. In season three her great-aunt dies and leaves her the motel, and when she panics and considers selling it, Johnny offers to become her business partner. Together they renovate it into the Rosebud Motel, and later bring in Roland Schitt as a partner as the business expands.

In season five Moira gives Stevie the lead role of Sally Bowles in the town's production of Cabaret, and after disappearing on opening night she returns to deliver a stunning performance. In the final season she briefly takes a job as a flight attendant before choosing to stay and help build the Rosebud Motel Group. She also serves as David's maid of honor at his wedding.

Behind the scenes and legacy

Emily Hampshire was so nervous about auditioning that she asked to send a tape instead, but she went in person in Los Angeles. Dan Levy has recalled that she gave a great reading and then hid inside her own shirt, which he found charming. The Levys wrote Stevie as a quiet counterweight to the Roses' excess.

Hampshire won multiple Canadian Screen Awards for the role, tying her castmate Catherine O'Hara's record for the most won by a comedic actress. Her Cabaret performance of "Maybe This Time" is one of the most beloved moments of the series.

Stevie Budd: frequently asked questions

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