The Max series Hacks hilariously examines gender and aging in show business, alongside the pitfalls of cancel culture.
In the show's first episode, the young comedy writer Ava (Hannah Einbinder) finds herself toxically unemployable after the internet commentariat deems one of her well-intentioned tweets homophobic. Desperate, she takes a job writing for Deborah Vance (Jean Smart), a legendary (read: old) Vegas comedienne who is obscenely wealthy but creatively bored. The characters clash—uberwoke Ava bristles against Deborah's personally insulting comedy style while Deborah laments that nobody can take a joke anymore—but they eventually become friends.
