The Premiere of season 3 of “Hacks” (HBO Max) took place at noon on March 9th at SXSW. It was truly an audience of devoted fans. The feeling in the Paramount Theater was equal parts anticipation and shared enthusiasm— not always the case at SXSW. Everyone present knew they were in for a great time, although there was a remark about how it was pretty early in the day for comedy. Saturday, March 9th in Austin, Texas, both Smart and Einbinder were at SXSW in person. Both looked great. Smart got a standing ovation.
SEASON 2
At the end of season two, Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) fired Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder). Deborah reassured Ava that the firing would be good for Ava’s comedy writing career. It is quite clear that the separation has hurt Ava more than it has hurt Deborah. You feel that Deborah is a mother figure for Ava; Ava feels abandoned. Of course, there was the unfortunate spilling of Deborah Vance’s stories to a journalist and the lawsuits last season. But, never fear, the dynamic duo is back together again in season three’s nine episodes.
The viewership for season two’s first episode increased +125% over the first episode of season one. It isn’t difficult to understand why if you’ve seen the show. It is top-notch. There are more laughs per episode in “Hacks” than in any other comedy on the air. That is due in no small part to Jean Smart’s savvy portrayal of veteran comedienne Deborah Vance, a part she seems to have been born to play. Jean Smart is only the second female—Betty White was the first— to win an Emmy in all three categories: leading actress in a comedy, supporting actress in a comedy, and guest star in a comedy series. Glen Weldon of NPR said, “I don’t know if the role of Deborah Vance was written for Smart, but she certainly makes it seem like it was.”
SERIES SUCCESS
Smart took home the Emmy for the leading actress in a comedy series two years in a row, 2021 and 2022. Hannah Einbinder is also great and has earned nominations for her work as Deborah’s sidekick. Hannah is the daughter of SNL original cast member Laraine Newman. The comic chemistry and timing the two bring to the screen is a magical part of the success of “Hacks.” The series won the Emmy, a Peabody award, a Critics’ Choice award, the DGA, SAG, WGA, and GLAAD awards.
SERIES SIZZLE
“Hacks’” wardrobe department makes it clear that glitter is back. There hasn’t been this much glitz everywhere since Disco died. I noticed the increase in sparkly clothes worn by average concert-goers here in Austin. Check out the wardrobe for “Hacks.” You’ll get the idea in the opening sequence for series three. We see a tall woman in a dazzling bejeweled long coat walking confidently into a casino. (Check the trailer for that glimpse.) I’m sure everyone in the theater this Saturday afternoon thought it was Deborah Vance making her entrance. It wasn’t.
SMART’S RESUME
From finding that Jean Smart has been a Type I diabetic since the age of 13 to learning that she lost her husband of 30 years, Richard Gilliland, in March of 2021, it’s been discovery week for me looking back at Jean Smart’s storied career. Delay-wise, there was the writers’ strike, the heart procedure, and the 2 years off television for “Hacks.” It’s hard to feel the funny when negative things impact you.
But veteran character actor Jean Smart is a trooper. She was one of television’s “Designing Women” (1986-1991). She appeared in episodes of “Frasier,” “Fargo,” “Watchtower” and, more recently, in 7 episodes of “Mare of Eastwick.” Recently, Damien Chazelle (“La La Land”) cast her in “Babylon” as Elinor St. John, a gossip columnist based on Hedda Hopper and Luella Parsons. In “Hacks” Smart plays a veteran comedy based on such pioneering comedy greats as Joan Rivers, Lucille Ball, Phyllis Diller, Elayne Boosler, Rita Rudner, Paula Poundstone, and Carol Burnett.
SCHEDULE
“Hacks” has been off the air for two years, leaving those of us who are true fans wondering if it was ever coming back. Didn’t it get renewed? The writer’s strike was given as one of the reasons that the absence was so lengthy. Furthermore, in February (2023) Jean Smart announced, via her Instagram account, that she had had “a heart procedure.” Even now, one department of “Hacks” has supposedly shut down while awaiting her complete recovery. The woman is 73, after all, and enjoying an unparalleled career resurgence.
CONCLUSION
The plan for season three is to air the Premiere episode (which is great) on HBO on May 3rd and then show two episodes a week until the Finale on May 30th. This season there will be guest stars like Helen Hunt, Christina Hendricks, Christopher Lloyd, George Wallace, and Tony Goldwyn. As for what the season holds, said writer Lucia Aniello, “I think there’s maybe a chasm between where they are respectively, in terms of their points-of-view of each other. I think it really brings up a lot because they are so obviously invested in each other.”
And we, the audience, are so obviously invested in Deborah and Ava.
