Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder Set Up The Fraught Fourth Season of HACKS: ‘It Frickin’ Rips’

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede Less than two minutes into the new season of HACKS, Deborah and Ava have an old-style, face-to-face showdown. Their noses are close to touching as they stare coldly into each other’s eyes. Neither of them raises their voice, which makes the situation even more tense. “Well, aren’t you a big brave girl,” Deborah says, with seething sarcasm. “I guess I am,” replies Ava, not giving an inch. “It’s for the best.” Then there’s a slight pause before Deborah says calmly but menacingly, “we’ll see.” That brief but unforgettable confrontation sets up the entire fourth season of Max’s HACKS, which premieres Thursday, April 10 on Crave. “It’s a moment that has been coming,” said Jean Smart, who plays Deborah, during a panel interview with the cast and creators. “Once you see it, you think, ‘well, I guess that kind of makes sense.’ It is a very threatening moment. As an actor, you play the scene, and to play opposite her (Hannah Einbinder, who plays Ava), everything’s easy, because it’s in her eyes. I mean, she’s right there.” Einbinder threw the compliment back at Smart. “Well, I learn from the best,” Einbinder said. “Like, the first time we saw (the afore-mentioned scene), I was over hanging with (the writers), and I think we rewound it nine times, because they’re just like, ‘crazy.’ And especially with the brilliant direction, as the camera moves on that shot, it’s continuous. You’re able to track walking through the hallway, walking in the door, in real time, sitting at the desk, hearing the knock, Jean coming in. It has a beautiful flow. And then to Jean’s point, I feel the same way about her, obviously, being face to face with her. We are so deeply close to these characters, it really just comes naturally. The dialogue, of course, leads the way, so we’re able to just embody that. And it frickin’ rips.” HACKS has “frickin’ ripped” for many years, racking up a fistful of EMMY® awards amid widespread critical acclaim. The original premise focused on the new and unlikely partnership between Deborah, an aging stand-up legend who is languishing on the Las Vegas casino circuit, and Ava, a cutting-edge young comedy writer who is hired to help revive Deborah’s career. The ups and downs between Deborah and Ava led to the game-changing occurrence at the end of Season 3 (SPOILER ALERT – general details are about to be discussed, and for anyone who needs to catch up, all episodes of HACKS are on Crave). Having finally landed her “white whale” by being named the host of a late-night talk show, Deborah reneged on making Ava the head writer, offering a mere staff writing position instead. But Ava, tired of being pushed around, had some significant “dirt” on Deborah, and decided to use it as blackmail. The final moments of Season 3 had Ava bluntly saying to Deborah, “I think I am your head writer after all.” Season 4 picks up on the same day, shortly afterward. “I think Ava is in a position where her hand has kind of been forced,” Einbinder said. “A lot of people ask me, ‘has Ava turned bad?’ No – but I think she has to speak Deborah’s language. Ava still has her core, and she still retains that spirit, but she just kind of has to play ball.” Whether Ava actually has the demeanour and fortitude to continue being a Deborah-styled, or at least Deborah-inspired, shark in the deep waters of the entertainment business will play out as Season 4 of HACKS progresses. “I give credit to the writing – I mean, it continually amazes me that they are able to find more and more for us to keep this dynamic going,” said Smart, referring to the ever-changing push-and-pull between Deborah and Ava. “My biggest fear after the first season was that, well, now that they’re kind of friendly and working together, is that going to be as much fun for the audience to sort of see them butting heads? But it’s amazing to me that it continues in the same vein, and just gets better and better … and meaner and nastier.”   billharristv@gmail.com @billharris_tv