Schitt's Creek's Emily Hampshire, Emily Hampshire to remake Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
Schitt’s Creek might have ended, but its cast continues to spread out into the wider TV universe. Hence news today—courtesy of The Wrap—that series star Emily Hampshire (who played sardonic hotel manager/adopted Rose Stevie Budd on all six seasons of the beloved comedy series) has lined up her next gig: Starring in, producing on, and writing for a remake of Norman Lear’s classic soap opera parody, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.
Starring Louise Lasser, and head-written by Ann Marcus, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman was a TV sensation in the 1970s, sending up the soap opera genre while injecting a relentless tide of consumer satire into the heart of the American home. A stereotypical housewife living an often un-stereotypical life, Lasser’s Mary lived in fear of “waxy yellow buildup” and the constant outbreaks of bizarre violence around her, introducing the wider world to the resident strangeness (and strange residents) of her hometown of Fernwood, Ohio. The new series sounds like it’s hoping to do something similar—except with the obligatory internet twist, as Hampshire’s Mary is forced to deal with the consequences and “verified” attention of the world after a clip of her having a breakdown goes viral online.
The reboot series—just the latest in efforts to revive Lear’s socially conscious, often biting TV comedy for modern audiences, following in the footsteps of One Day At A Time—is being developed at Sony TV. Letterkenny’s Jacob Tierney, a long-time collaborator of Hampshire’s, will co-write and serve as a showrunner on the series.