Let’s look back at this duo’s messy, magnetic partnership
BY DAISY DEMPSEY, IMAGE BY MAX
Since its 2021 debut, Hacks has given us one of television’s most compelling not-quite-love stories. Deborah (Jean Smart), a legendary comic clawing to remain relevant, and Ava (Hannah Einbinder), a disgraced Gen Z writer with nowhere else to go, are bound together in something far messier than mentorship.
Their relationship isn’t romantic, but it is intimately charged with obsession, power, and a delightful push-and-pull. With the final season now airing on Sky and NOW, here’s a look back at the highs and lows that have defined their electric, often brutal bond.
High: Deborah’s “Writing Retreat”
Season One’s so-called “writing retreat” is peak Hacks misdirection. Deborah drags Ava to Seven Graces Surgical Center for her ‘semi-regular’ eyelift, hardly a creative sanctuary. Yet, somehow, it becomes one of their most intimate moments. High on edibles and freed (briefly) from her armour, we see Deborah’s lighter side as she eats take-away and pranks her overly-attentive nurse, Perla. She opens up about betrayal, aging, and the scars left when her ex-husband had an affair with her younger sister, Kathy (J. Smith-Cameron). In return, Ava responds with her own vulnerability, admitting to her struggle after witnessing the sudden death of her one-night stand. It’s a quietly tender moment that speaks to the emotional connection both women seem to crave and reject simultaneously.
Low: Ava’s Erroneous Email
Ava’s rage-fuelled email in Season Two is less a mistake and more a detonation. After being fired, she sends a vicious, deeply personal exposé of Deborah to network executives heading Bitch PM. A new show which, in their words, is about a prime minister. Who is a bitch. Clever. In the email, Ava divulges everything vulnerable she’s been trusted with. It’s cruel and designed to wound. Sobbing to Deborah in a roadside restaurant whilst the pair complete their whistlestop tour of midwest comedy clubs, Ava confesses to writing: “The truth is Deborah Vance is a bully… It’s her own fault she’s so lonely. No one in her life actually loves her.” For a show that’s rooted in sharp dialogue, this lands like a gut punch. It’s betrayal in its rawest form. And yet, in true Hacks fashion, the fallout is underscored by gloriously camp audacity. Against a soundtrack of Elton John’s The Bitch Is Back Deborah reveals she is suing Ava, all whilst speeding down the highway in her electric blue Bentley. Naturally.
High: Ava’s Blackmail of Deborah
By the end of Season Three, Ava does the unthinkable: she flips their power dynamic. Armed with knowledge of Deborah’s one-night stand with network CEO Bob Lipka (Tony Goldwyn), Ava blackmails her way into the role of head writer on Late Night with Deborah Vance. It’s ruthlessly strategic and, in a twisted way, exactly what Deborah has been training her to become. Their relationship shifts into something more openly volatile as they navigate a large-scale public workplace, rather than Deborah’s front room. The jabs get sharper, the sabotage more creative (sending Ava’s underwear to HR? Iconically unhinged behaviour), but so does the respect. Are they toxic? Absolutely. But it makes for undeniably exciting viewership.
Low: Deborah’s Interview with Ruby Rojas
If there’s one moment that feels genuinely difficult to watch, it’s Deborah’s on-air ambush of Ava’s ex. Interviewing actress Ruby Rojas (Lorenza Izzo) live on air, she pushes her into recounting a painfully awkward story about Ava’s failed proposal. Ava, upon finding what turned out to be a prop-ring in Ruby’s wardrobe, issued an impromptu, disastrous proposal. Deborah turns this private humiliation into a public spectacle. Ava, blindsided, is left in tears. It’s a reminder that for all Deborah’s charisma, her instinct for self-preservation often overrides any empathy. She doesn’t just push boundaries, she weaponises them. This is often refreshingly morally grey, but this time, it stings.
So, what are they, really?
With the final season now unfolding, the question is no longer whether Deborah and Ava will individually succeed; it’s whether they can survive each other. Their connection is undeniable, but will it ultimately, and perhaps inevitably, self combust? All will be revealed on Sky and Now TV this April and May.
Love media made by and for LGBTQIA+ women and gender diverse people? Then you’ll love DIVA. We’ve been spotlighting the community for over 30 years. Here’s how you can get behind queer media and keep us going for another generation: linkin.bio/ig-divamagazine
Did you know that DIVA has now become a charity? Our magazine is published by the DIVA Charitable Trust. You can find out more about the organisation and how you can offer your support here: divacharitabletrust.com
