Dany Levy juggled several hats while working Schitt stream, a move he says caused so much physical stress that he needed a neck brace at one point.

The lead actor, writer and showrunner of the Emmy-winning comedy has previously spoken about his lack of social life while working on the hit series. Social isolation has been largely driven, he says in a new interview with British GQ, by his many creative roles in the series which required long hours and saw him sleep little.

Levy told the magazine his days would start at 5 a.m., when he hit the set before rehearsing and rewriting scenes, making wardrobe and setting decisions, approving budgets and to keep filming – sometimes as an actor and other times as a comedian. director. It was in addition to spending several hours managing the writers room of the series. By the time he got home he only had time for a quick bite to eat before returning to write until about 2 a.m.

The Schitt Creek The star admitted that for a few weeks, “I didn’t get more than eight hours of sleep.”

This physically demanding schedule has only worsened with the seasons. “Because the more we built the show, the more I was proud of it. And the more I wanted to create more compelling and dimensional stories, the more we wanted to expand our world… ”

This hyper-focus on the show led to increased stress, and by the show’s sixth season, it was so bad he needed a neck brace. “The anxiety in my neck was so strong that I couldn’t move it,” he explained. “At one point an acupuncturist and a chiropractor came every day for lunch to work on my neck so that I could actually play and no, you know, I looked like I needed a neck brace.”

The pandemic, the actor shared, has given him a much-appreciated opportunity to take a break and be with his family in Toronto. “It was actually pretty amazing,” he said. “Like, every time would you have time to reset like that?” “

With Schitt Creek behind him and the pandemic giving him a chance to recalibrate, Levy shares that he’s started working on his latest creative project – a gay romantic comedy.

“I always wanted to do [a romcom]”, He declared” I always wanted to be part of it. And as a gay person, you never get that kind of an opportunity. You can play the wacky friend or Pepe the colleague. So I’m really excited and honored to have this opportunity to bring a gay person to the fore in a romantic comedy.