Daniel Levy is navigating new waters post-鈥淪chitt鈥檚 Creek.鈥�

The Toronto-raised co-creator and star of the hit CBC sitcom, which is up for a leading 21 Canadian Screen Awards this week, is working under a three-year overall deal with ABC Studios, a part of Disney Television Studios. The gig announced in September 2019 has him developing and producing scripted projects for the studio.

Levy says he鈥檚 picking and pulling some ideas he used to jot down in a journal when he had rare downtime during the making of 鈥淪chitt鈥檚 Creek,鈥� which ended its sixth and final season last year and swept the 2020 Emmys comedy categories with seven wins.

鈥淔ortunately I鈥檓 now in a place where people are really interested in those ideas, which is a stark contrast to when I started and nobody cared. So it鈥檚 been fun to be able to actually see things move,鈥� the actor-writer-producer, who was also the showrunner of 鈥淪chitt鈥檚,鈥� said with a laugh from Los Angeles.

鈥淚鈥檝e been dabbling in the animation world, I鈥檝e been playing with the concept of what would a thriller look like, I鈥檓 hopefully going to be putting a rom-com together for myself. That鈥檚 always been a dream, to write a romantic comedy for me, because Hollywood certainly isn鈥檛. And really exploring all the areas outside of what I had been doing on the show.鈥�

Levy said he鈥檚 never considered himself to be a comedy writer but rather someone who just happened to write a story that was funny.

鈥淪o the idea of exploring different genres has always been of great interest,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut I think inevitably there will be some some humour and some heart to all of it.

鈥淎nd I think when you鈥檝e seen the kind of impact that some of the stories that we were telling on 鈥楽chitt鈥檚 Creek鈥� can have on the world, it does make you realize that it鈥檚 important to continue to tell those stories and to make sure that any project that I do from here on out is saying something constructive.鈥�

鈥淪chitt鈥檚 Creek,鈥� which aired on Pop TV in the U.S., followed the formerly wealthy Rose family as they grew accustomed to a more humble life in a motel in a small town. Viewers and critics praised its inclusive and joyful storylines, including that of Levy鈥檚 character, David, who identified as pansexual (someone who is open to all sexual orientations or gender identities).

鈥溾�楽chitt鈥檚 Creek鈥� was never heavy-handed in the stories that we were telling about the LGBTQIA+ community, but they were meaningful because of that sort of ease,鈥� said Levy, who is openly gay.

鈥淎nd so I think it鈥檚 just about telling stories that mean something to people, that allow people to see themselves where they don鈥檛 often see themselves. And I think, at this point, it鈥檚 also been a real mandate for me to use whatever success I have to leverage the voices of other people around me who need to be heard.鈥�

Many 鈥淪chitt鈥檚 Creek鈥� fans are hoping for a film featuring the Roses, who are also played by co-creator Eugene Levy, Catherine O鈥橦ara and Annie Murphy.

But 鈥渁s of now, there鈥檚 nothing going on鈥� on that front, said Levy.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important to take some space to allow people to kind of miss you,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 would hate to wrap up the show and then within a year come back with something else. That kind of feels oddly misleading.鈥�

The Ontario-shot series 鈥渉as been and continues to be the greatest experience of鈥� Levy鈥檚 life, he said, adding that reuniting with the team 鈥渋s obviously something that I would love to do.鈥�

鈥淏ut quality has always been paramount, and I simply won鈥檛 do anything that鈥檚 not as good as it can possibly be. So until that idea comes into my head about what to do next with these people, we鈥檙e just not going to do it.鈥�

Levy is also getting the CSA鈥檚 Radius Award, which honours Canadians who are making waves globally.

The trophies are being presented this week in a series of livestreamed presentations on the website and social media channels of the Academy Of Canadian Cinema & Television. Levy said he recorded a video for Thursday鈥檚 main event.

The CSAs are 鈥渋ncredibly meaningful,鈥� said Levy, because they鈥檝e honoured every department of the 鈥淪chitt鈥檚 Creek鈥� from the beginning, before the show blew up globally on Netflix.

鈥淚鈥檝e kind of made it my mission to make sure that everybody knows how Canadian this show is throughout the past year and a half of promoting it, and I鈥檓 incredibly proud of the efforts of our Canadian cast and crew and what they鈥檝e managed to do with this show and how far they鈥檝e managed to take it,鈥� Levy said.

Levy, who recently made his hosting debut on 鈥淪aturday Night Live,鈥� said he wants to use his platform to help create opportunities for others and 鈥渞eally pay it forward so that we can continue to open those doors for diverse storytelling and also opportunities.鈥�

He also wants to use social media to help others, as he recently did with the University of Alberta鈥檚 Indigenous Studies Program. Levy encouraged fans to follow in his footsteps by enrolling in the school鈥檚 free online Indigenous Canada course and donating to the program.

鈥淚t does feel like at a point, if you鈥檙e not using a platform of that kind for something other than a selfie 鈥� which don鈥檛 get me wrong, I have done and will likely do in the future 鈥� it鈥檚 a waste,鈥� Levy said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an incredibly isolating experience if you don鈥檛 use your success to help people.鈥�

Victoria Ahearn, The Canadian Press

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