| Bg Colour: |
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| Image Alt: | The poster shows lead character Deborah Vance in gold sequined suit holding a microphone. Hacks is in large type behind her. |
| Starring: | |
| Num Episodes: | 10 |
| Network: | HBO Max |
The first season of American comedy-drama streaming series Hacks debuted on May 13, 2021, on HBO Max. The series was co-created by Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky. Starring Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder, the season follows two comedians from different generations who forge a working relationship. Season one received critical acclaim and earned accolades including Primetime Emmy Awards for directing, writing, and acting (for Smart).
Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky developed the idea for Hacks on a road trip in 2015. The three worked together previously on Broad City, and Aniello and Downs are romantic partners.[1]
HBO Max ordered the pilot for Hacks, a single-camera comedy series, from co-creators Aniello, Downs, and Statsky in January 2020,[2] and then picked it up for a 10-episode order in May 2020. The series is co-executive produced with Michael Schur (Fremulon), and David Miner and Morgan Sackett (3 Arts Entertainment). Hacks is produced by Universal Television.
On February 8, 2021, Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder were announced as the two lead cast members and Carl Clemons-Hopkins was announced as a main cast member.[3] Additional recurring cast members were also announced: Kaitlin Olson, Christopher McDonald, co-creator Paul W. Downs, Mark Indelicato, Poppy Liu, Johnny Sibilly, Meg Stalter, and Rose Abdoo.
The series premiered on May 13, 2021, with the release of episodes one and two.[4]
The first season received critical acclaim. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an 100% approval rating based on 74 critics’ reviews, with an average rating of 8.3/10. The website's critics consensus states, "A prickling debut that pulls few punches, Hacks deftly balances its sharp critiques of the comedy world with more intimate moments, all the while giving the incomparable Jean Smart a role worthy of her talents – and an excellent partner in Hannah Einbinder."[5] Metacritic calculated a weighted average score of 82 out of 100 based on 24 critics.[6]
| Award | Year | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Cinema Editors Awards | 2022 | Best Edited Comedy Series | [7] | |||
| American Society of Cinematographers Awards | 2022 | Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in an Episode of a Half-Hour Television Series | Adam Bricker (for "There Is No Line") | [8] | ||
| Art Directors Guild Awards | 2022 | Excellence in Production Design for a Half Hour Single-Camera Television Series | Jon Carlos (for "Primm") | [9] | ||
| Costume Designers Guild Awards | 2022 | Excellence in Contemporary Television | Kathleen Felix-Hager (for "There is No Line") | [10] | ||
| Critics' Choice Television Awards | 2022 | Best Comedy Series | Hacks | [11] | ||
| Best Actress in a Comedy Series | Jean Smart | |||||
| Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | Hannah Einbinder | |||||
| Directors Guild of America Awards | 2022 | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series | Lucia Aniello (for "There Is No Line") | [12] | ||
| GLAAD Media Awards | 2022 | Outstanding New TV Series | Hacks | [13] | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | 2022 | Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy | Hacks | [14] | ||
| Best Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy | Hannah Einbinder | |||||
| Jean Smart | ||||||
| Golden Reel Awards | 2022 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – 1/2 Hour – Comedy or Drama | Brett Hinton, Marc Glassman, Ryne Gierke, Samuel Munoz, Noel Vought, Jason Tregoe Newman (for "There Is No Line") | [15] | ||
| Gotham Awards | 2021 | Breakthrough Series – Short Format | Hacks | [16] | ||
| Outstanding Performance in a New Series | data-sort-value="Smart, Jean" | Jean Smart | ||||
| Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards | 2021 | Best Streaming Series, Comedy | Hacks | [17] | ||
| Best Actress in a Streaming Series, Comedy | data-sort-value="Smart, Jean" | Jean Smart | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress in a Streaming Series, Comedy | data-sort-value="Einbinder, Hannah" | Hannah Einbinder | ||||
| data-sort-value="Olson, Kaitlin" | Kaitlin Olson | |||||
| Peabody Awards | 2021 | Entertainment | Hacks | [18] | ||
| Primetime Emmy Awards | 2021 | Outstanding Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Statsky, Jen" | Jen Statsky, Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello, Michael Schur, David Miner, Morgan Sackett, Joanna Calo, Andrew Law and David Hyman | [19] [20] | |
| Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Smart, Jean" | Jean Smart | ||||
| Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Clemons-Hopkins, Carl" | |||||
| Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Einbinder, Hannah" | Hannah Einbinder | ||||
| Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Aniello, Lucia" | Lucia Aniello | ||||
| Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Aniello, Lucia" | Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky | ||||
| Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | 2021 | Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Adams, Jane" | |||
| Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="McCarthy, Jeanne" | Jeanne McCarthy and Nicole Abellera Hallman | ||||
| Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (Half-Hour) | data-sort-value="Bricker, Adam" | Adam Bricker | ||||
| Outstanding Contemporary Costumes | data-sort-value="Felix-Hager, Kathleen" | Kathleen Felix-Hager and Karen Bellamy | ||||
| Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series | data-sort-value="Vaill, Susan" | |||||
| data-sort-value="Brunetto, Jessica" | Jessica Brunetto | |||||
| data-sort-value="Greer, Ali" | Ali Greer | |||||
| Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Program (Half-Hour) | data-sort-value="Carlos, Jon" | Jon Carlos, James Bolenbaugh and Ellen Reede Dorros | ||||
| Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation | data-sort-value="Cook, John" | John W. Cook II, Ben Wilkins and Jim Lakin | ||||
| Producers Guild of America Awards | 2022 | Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Comedy | Jen Statsky, Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello, Michael Schur, David Miner, Morgan Sackett, Joanna Calo, Andrew Law, David Hyman, Joe Mande, and Jessica Chaffin | [21] | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2022 | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series | Rose Abdoo, Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Paul W. Downs, Hannah Einbinder, Mark Indelicato, Poppy Liu, Christopher McDonald, Jean Smart, and Megan Stalter | [22] | ||
| Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series | Jean Smart | |||||
| Set Decorators Society of America Awards | 2021 | Best Achievement in Decor/Design of a Half-Hour Single-Camera Series | data-sort-value="Dorros, Ellen Reede" | Ellen Reede Dorros and Jonathan Carlos | [23] | |
| Television Critics Association Awards | 2021 | Program of the Year | Hacks | [24] | ||
| Outstanding Achievement in Comedy | ||||||
| Outstanding New Program | ||||||
| Individual Achievement in Comedy | data-sort-value="Smart, Jean" | Jean Smart | ||||
| Writers Guild of America Awards | 2022 | Comedy Series | Lucia Aniello, Joanna Calo, Jessica Chaffin, Paul W. Downs, Cole Escola, Janis E. Hirsch, Ariel Karlin, Katherine Kearns, Andrew Law, Joe Mande, Pat Regan, Samantha Riley, Michael Schur, Jen Statsky | [25] | ||
| New Series | Lucia Aniello, Joanna Calo, Jessica Chaffin, Paul W. Downs, Cole Escola, Janis E. Hirsch, Ariel Karlin, Katherine Kearns, Andrew Law, Joe Mande, Pat Regan, Samantha Riley, Michael Schur, Jen Statsky |