Article

Emily Hampshire

Published Online November 3, 2023

Last Edited November 3, 2023

Emily Hampshire, actor (born 29 August 1979 in Montreal, QC). Emily Hampshire is perhaps best known for her award-winning turn as Stevie Budd in the acclaimed CBC comedy Schitt’s Creek (2015–20). A professional actor since she was 16, Hampshire has had a long career in film and television, with nearly 100 credits to her name. She has won a Gemini Award, a Canadian Comedy Award and seven Canadian Screen Awards.

Early Life and Education

Emily Hampshire spent much of her early life in and around Montreal, living at least part of her youth in the suburb of Beaconsfield. Her father is a dentist and she is the only actor in her family. She attended Queen of Angels Academy in Montreal at her mother’s insistence. Hampshire developed an interest in acting around the age of 11 when her mother dragged her from a pool party to see a production of Les Misérables. She also credits Wanda Swiderski, a vice-principal at her school, with encouraging her to pursue acting. Her first acting role was that of Anne Shirley in her school’s production of Anne of Green Gables.

At 16, Hampshire decided to move to Toronto to begin her career. She has stated that her parents couldn’t have stopped her if they had tried. Hampshire auditioned for and was accepted into the American Academy of Dramatic Arts out of high school, but chose not to attend as she had already been cast in a film. Hampshire has recommended the book Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke to inspire young actors to live like artists.

Career Highlights

Emily Hampshire’s first acting credit in television was two episodes (one in 1994 and the other in 1996) of Are You Afraid of the Dark?, a series that also helped launch the careers of Elisha Cuthbert and Ryan Gosling. Hampshire’s first film credit was as Geneviève Bujold’s daughter in Dead Innocent (1997). Her first major recurring role was in Rick Mercer’s satirical CBC comedy Made in Canada (1998–2001), which won a 2001 Gemini Award for its cast for Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series.

Hampshire would once again perform in a production of Anne of Green Gables. She voiced the part of Diana Barry in 23 episodes of Anne of Green Gables: The Animated Series (2001–02). She also lent her voice to the role of Alyson Malitski in 30 episodes of the animated series Braceface (2001–05). She continued voice acting in many animated programs, including 6Teen (2004–06) and Carl2 (2005–06). She then portrayed Misery in 26 episodes of the program Ruby Gloom (2006–07) opposite Sarah Gadon.


Hampshire has appeared in many notable Canadian films, including Jerry Ciccoritti’s The Life Before This (1999) and Blood (2004); Jacob Tierney’s Twist (2003), The Trotsky (2009) opposite Jay Baruchel and Good Neighbours (2010); Marc Evans’s Snow Cake (2006) with Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman and Carrie-Anne Moss; David Cronenberg’s Cosmopolis (2012) opposite Robert Pattinson, and Xavier Dolan’s Laurence Anyways (2012) and The Death & Life of John F. Donovan (2018). For her work in Cosmopolis, she received the 2012 Birks Canadian Diamond Award issued by Telefilm Canada at the Cannes Film Festival. Her performance in Sean Garrity’s An Awkward Sexual Adventure (2012) earned her a 2013 Canadian Comedy Award for best leading film actress.

Hampshire also appeared in Canadian TV series, such as This Is Wonderland (2004), Republic of Doyle (2011) and Rookie Blue (2013–15). She portrayed the character Jennifer Goines in 40 episodes of the TV adaptation of 12 Monkeys (2015–18). Concurrently, she also appeared as Stevie Budd in 78 episodes of CBC’s historic hit Schitt’s Creek (2015–20), which earned her six Canadian Screen Awards for best supporting actress in a comedy. More recently, she co-starred in the Amazon Prime series The Rig (2023–), a supernatural thriller.


Awards

  • Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series (Made in Canada), Gemini Awards (2001)
  • Best Performance by a Female – Film (An Awkward Sexual Adventure), Canadian Comedy Awards (2013)
  • Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role or Guest Role in a Comedic Series (Schitt’s Creek), Canadian Screen Awards (2016, 2017)
  • Best Supporting or Guest Actress, Comedy (Schitt’s Creek), Canadian Screen Awards (2018, 2019)
  • Best Lead Performance, Web Program or Series (Save Me), Canadian Screen Awards (2020)
  • Best Supporting Actress, Comedy (Schitt’s Creek), Canadian Screen Awards (2020, 2021)
  • Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (Schitt’s Creek), Screen Actors Guild Awards (2021)