Emily Hampshire gets candid about Catherine O'Hara and life after Schitt's Creek - exclusive

Emily Hampshire found herself in a bit of trouble after joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe for VisionQuest – the new WandaVision spin-off co-starring Paul Bettany and James Spader. "I knew it was going to be top secret. I did not know I was joining like witness protection," the Canadian actress quips of her entry into the multi-billion-dollar superhero franchise, renowned for its ironclad security and extreme measures to keep plotlines under wraps.

"I learned my lesson very fast," says Emily, who confessed to accidentally misplacing a "side" – an excerpt from a script – during filming for the genre-bending eight-part series. "If you don't give them back at the end of the day, they send somebody to your house to get them. It's a miracle that I am still in this show," she jokes.

In the series, the 45-year-old star plays E.D.I.T.H., one of a collection of AI personas living in the mindspace of Bettany's Android Vision.

"It was amazing," Emily says of working with the star-studded cast, which includes Oppenheimer's James D'Arcy and The Foreigner's Orla Brady. "With the AIs, it was like family, and with Paul, it was like we'd known each other all our lives," she beams. "We're definitely the kids in class who would be separated by the teacher. And James [Spader] is the best actor I've ever worked with, he blew my mind."

Showrunner Terry Matalas, who previously cast Emily as the "wild" maths genius Jennifer Goines in the sci-fi hit 12 Monkeys, wrote the role of E.D.I.T.H. with her in mind. 

"When he was writing this show, he said, 'You know, I'm writing E.D.I.T.H. and I keep hearing your voice'," recalled the actress.

Does she find herself naturally drawn to eccentric, quirky characters? "It's weird because it's not like I ask for them," she laughs. "I think it might be my personality."

Though globally recognised for her standout performance as deadpan motel manager Stevie Budd in the beloved comedy Schitt’s Creek – a role that earned her six Canadian Screen Awards – Emily insists she is "nothing like" her famous on-screen counterpart. 

"I'd go on a date and people would be expecting Stevie."

"When I was doing that show, I was doing 12 Monkeys at the same time. I'd go on a date and people would be expecting Stevie, and they would get Jennifer because l'm much more like her and E.D.I.T.H," she shares. "I guess these roles, especially anything Terry writes for me, there is a side of my personality in it."

Schitt's Creek also gave Emily the privilege of working alongside the late comedy icon Catherine O’Hara, who passed away at age 71 in January. The pair had previously worked together in the 1999 crime drama The Life Before This. "I didn't even have scenes with her in that movie, and yet she was so generous with me and so kind, and that is just who she is," says Emily. "If anything, being around Catherine, you'll feel like you're a bad person because if somebody comes in and is like, 'Would you like a coffee,' and if you don't go get them a coffee – like, that's what she would do."

"She was just the most generous, amazing, and most alive person I think anyone who's worked with her has ever met, and it just doesn't feel very real for her not to be here."

Since Schitt's Creek ended after six seasons in 2020, Emily has been consistently busy, working across a variety of genres from the supernatural thriller The Rig to the horror series, Chapelwaite.

"I wish I could say I was discerning with what I did," she candidly says of her career choices. "Success to me would be to have that choice, to be like, 'I want to do this. I don't want to do that.' And I've been very lucky that the projects that have come to me have been great. Me saying I don't have the choice is like, I want to work. I like working. I want to work all the time."

Emily's next venture sees her stepping into another massive cultural phenomenon: the gay hockey romance, Heated Rivalry. 

"It's so funny because I joined the MCU, which is the most secretive and has the most rabid fan base, and yet Heated Rivalry, I would say, rivals it," Emily says of the TV adaptation of Rachel Reid’s bestselling novel series, which unexpectedly became a global hit following its US debut in November last year. 

"I have never seen a fan base like this. And I can't tell you anything yet," says Emily, who plays a sex toy reviewer in season two, which is set to premiere in spring 2027.

"I play Vanessa, which is out. You can read the books, and then you'll know, but I'm not allowed to tell you."

As she balances her jam-packed schedule of blockbuster franchises and breakout indie hits, Emily is embracing this chapter of her life with newfound confidence.

"It was the greatest thing turning 40, particularly as a woman, I just felt like I could actually say what I thought," she shares. "I can say things and I don't really care what other people think that much. 

"I mean, sometimes I do, which I'm trying to not do anymore," she adds. 

VisionQuest is available to stream on Disney+.