Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder are TV\u2019s funniest and nastiest odd-couple in this Emmy-winning smash hit. But co-creator and star Paul W Downs discusses why things are a lot sunnier and sillier for the pair in its final series<\/p>\n\n
It hit the Vegas Strip running. Since it crashed on to our screens in 2021, Hacks has been a critical darling. This tale of a pair of extremely different comics who end up working together takes the classic sitcom set up, injects it with some HBO gloss, and gives us a grippingly watchable central relationship that is frequently adorable \u2013 while also featuring some of TV\u2019s most venomous putdowns. It has a 99% Rotten Tomatoes score, 12 Emmy wins, including outstanding comedy series in 2024, and has propelled its cast into the stratosphere. And it\u2019s about to enter its final season ever.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s nothing new about its ending, though. \u201cThe concept came to us in 20 \u2026 15?\u201d says Paul W Downs, who created the show with his wife, Lucia Aniello, and their creative partner Jen Statsky. They even had the ending in mind at the first meeting at which they pitched the show to HBO in 2019. \u201cWe really had it fully fleshed out, including the final episode, which we pitched to most networks.\u201d<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/3d92cfc4444fcb383adecbbfeb38dceb2f7dc242\/828_1595_4086_3269\/master\/4086.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=ceac24542ef1d3a6ba6bd052706ef239\" "\\"Toxic")
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