Hacks is an American comedy-drama television series created by Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky that premiered on May 13, 2021, on HBO Max. Starring Jean Smart, Hannah Einbinder, and Carl Clemons-Hopkins, the series centers on the professional relationship between a young comedy writer and a legendary stand-up comedienne. The series received critical acclaim and won accolades including Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing, Outstanding Directing, and for Smart, Outstanding Lead Actress, as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy. In June 2021, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on May 12, 2022. In June 2022, the series was renewed for a third season.
Premise
Deborah Vance, a legendary Las Vegas stand-up comedy diva, needs to re-invent her aging act to avoid losing her residency at the Palmetto Casino. Ava is a young comedy writer who is unable to find work due to an insensitive tweet and her reputation for being self-centered and arrogant. When Ava's agent sends her to work as Deborah's new head writer, the two slowly bond as Ava pushes her new boss to take more risks and Deborah, in turn, helps Ava start to work through her personal problems.
Cast and characters
Main
Jean Smart as Deborah Vance, a legendary Las Vegas stand-up comedian
Hannah Einbinder as Ava Daniels, a down-on-her-luck comedy writer
Carl Clemons-Hopkins as Marcus, COO of Deborah's management company and her closest advisor
Recurring
Kaitlin Olson as Deborah "DJ" Vance Jr., Deborah's daughter
Christopher McDonald as Marty Ghilain, CEO of the Palmetto Casino
Paul W. Downs as Jimmy LuSaque, Deborah and Ava's agent
Mark Indelicato as Damien, Deborah's personal assistant
Rose Abdoo as Josefina, Deborah's estate manager
Megan Stalter as Kayla, the airhead daughter of Jimmy's boss, who works as his assistant Poppy Liu as Kiki, Deborah's personal blackjack dealer Johnny Sibilly as Wilson, a water inspector who gets entangled with Marcus Angela Elayne Gibbs as Robin, Marcus' mother Jane Adams as Nina Daniels, Ava's mother Lorenza Izzo as Ruby, Ava's ex-girlfriend Luenell as Miss Loretta, Robin's best friend Joe Mande as Ray, a hotel clerk for the Palmetto Lauren Weedman as Madam Mayor Pezzimenti, mayor of Las Vegas
Guest
Jefferson Mays as T.L. Gurley, an antique dealer who holds a grudge against Deborah Brent Sexton (season 1) and W. Earl Brown (season 2) as Michael, Jimmy's boss and Kayla's father Jeff Ward as George, a man Ava meets and bonds with Paul Felder as Aidan, DJ's mixed martial artist husband. Louis Herthum as Dennis Daniels, Ava's father Anna Maria Horsford as Francine, a veteran comedian who is an old friend of Deborah Linda Purl as Kathy Vance, Deborah's estranged sister Chris Geere and Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Jesse and Daisy, two British TV producers who interview Ava Amanda Payton as Jackie Martha Kelly as Barbara, a human resources representative (season 2) Ming-Na Wen as Janet Stone, a talent agent and Jimmy's rival (season 2) Laurie Metcalf as "Weed"/Alice, an eccentric tour manager (season 2) Wayne Newton as himself (season 2) Margaret Cho as herself (season 2) Harriet Harris as Susan, an old friend of Deborah (season 2) Susie Essman as Elaine Carter, a director and an old friend of Deborah (season 2) Devon Sawa as Jason (season 2) Jessica Chaffin as Jill, Ava's pro bono legal advisor (season 2)
Episodes
Season 1 (2021)
Season 2 (2022)
Production
In May 2020, HBO Max announced that it had picked up the series and that Jean Smart would star. Additional casting was announced in February 2021. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, actors held table reads over Zoom, there were no cast parties during production, and stars Smart and Clemons-Hopkins did not even meet each other in person until minutes before filming began. In June 2021, HBO Max renewed the series for a second season, and the cast added Laurie Metcalf, Martha Kelly, and Ming-Na Wen in recurring roles and Margaret Cho as a guest star.
In June 2022, HBO Max renewed the series for a third season. In September 2022, the showrunners revealed that a time jump would take place between the second and third season. Production began for the third season in November 2022 and production paused near the end of February 2023 for a few weeks before resuming in March due to Jean Smart recovering from a "successful heart procedure". Production shut down in May 2023 due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike.