‘Someone was gonna be waterboarded’: The Scary Story of Jean Smart Auditioning for ‘Hacks’ That Led Up to Her Golden Globes Win

SUMMARY

• Actress Jean Smart won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Series - Musical or Comedy for her role as Deborah Vance in Hacks.
• The Max show has received rave reviews since its debut in 2021 and this was Smart's second Golden Globe Award for the role.
• Smart revealed that the audition process for the show, which took place during COVID-19 restrictions, was scary as the setting was heavily protected.

Jean Smart won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy for her role as stand-up comic Deborah Vance in Hacks. The Max show has been lauded for its writing and performances ever since it debuted in 2021 and it also won the award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy this year.

Hannah Einbinder and Jean Smart in Hacks | Credits: Max

Smart, who is known for her roles in Frasier, Watchmen, and Babylon, reportedly auditioned for the role back when the COVID-19 restrictions were extremely strict. She mentioned that the soundstage for the audition was extremely scary, with dark plexiglass and a single lightbulb making it resemble an interrogation room.

Jean Smart talks about her scary audition process for her Golden Globe-winning role in Hacks

Actress Jean Smart has been a part of multiple acclaimed shows before. She has won several Emmys for her role in Frasier and has been nominated for shows like 24, Samantha Who?, Mare of Easttown, and more. However, her biggest role at the moment is her two-time Golden Globe-winning role as Deborah Vance in Hacks.

The Max-produced TV show sees Smart play an aging stand-up comic who teams up with the up-and-comer, who encourages her to take risks with her material. The series has been lauded for its writing, with the show winning the Golden Globe and the Emmy for Best Comedy Series.

After going through a heart procedure before filming season 3, Jean Smart returned with great fanfare and a Golden Globe win. She spoke about the scary audition process for the show. The chemistry read between Smart and co-star Hannah Einbinder reportedly took place during the pre-vaccine COVID-19 era and hence had many precautions( via The Wrap).

Jean Smart in Hacks | Credits: Max

We walked into this empty sound stage. It looked like a massive airplane hangar. It was dark with a light bulb on a stand and two straight-back chairs. Like someone was gonna be waterboarded after they were interrogated. And they were in the dark kind of watching us.

Einbinder reportedly joked that the whole audition process was a ruse to kill her while co-creator Paul W. Downs appreciated the leading ladies for securing the roles despite the terrifying setting.

Jean Smart reportedly wants Elton John to feature in Hacks Season 4

Elton John | Credits: YouTube/bluemoves78

After the incredible responses for Hacks Season 3, the makers of the comedy series revealed that they were full steam ahead with the fourth season. The series won the Golden Globe for Best TV Series – Musical or Comedy this year along with Jean Smart’s Emmy and Golden Globe wins for Best Actress.

The show has had many cameos from prominent actors and stand-up comics like Carrot Top, Margaret Cho, Aristotle Athari, and Christopher Lloyd. However, for the fourth season, Smart hoped that legendary musician Elton John would make a cameo. Speculating that he probably liked the series, she said to Deadline,

I would think I’d died and gone to heaven if he came on the show. I mean, we’ve gotten to use two of his songs on the show. Season 2, ‘The Bitch is Back’ was perfect, and then this [season] was, ‘I’m Still Standing’, which was perfect. And so I think that he likes the show, so maybe we could write an incredible part for him that would be awesome. 

She also mentioned that she was a huge fan of the Rocketman singer-songwriter and had an inkling that they would be friends if they met.

Hacks is streaming on Max.

Written by Nishanth A

Articles Published: 1712

Nishanth A is a Media, English and Psychology graduate from Bangalore. He is an avid DC fanboy and loves the films of Christopher Nolan. He has published over 1,000 articles on FandomWire. When he's not fixating on the entire filmography of a director, he tries to write and direct films.