The creators of 'Hacks' have revealed the thinking behind the series finale's emotional twist, in which Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) fakes a terminal illness to test her bond with protégé Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder). The episode, now streaming on HBO Max, sees Deborah reveal that a cancerous mass has spread and she plans to travel to an assisted suicide facility in Paris. However, after a joyful trip together, the pair begin riffing on comedy material, and Deborah decides to live and create a new special with Ava.
Co-creator Lucia Aniello explained that the illness storyline was always intended to lead to redemption, not death. 'The purpose of having her be sick was for the ultimate redemption, the idea of the comedy and writing together saving her life,' she told Variety. 'There's no reason for her to be sick, except to tell the story of how, in the end, she is saved by her want to continue to write.'
The finale mirrors the pilot, where Deborah is inspired by her banter with Ava. Aniello, along with fellow creators Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky, had pitched this ending from the start. 'Deborah being inspired by her banter with Ava is obviously the inciting incident to the pilot,' Aniello said. 'To have it also be the way the show ends is why this was always the idea from the beginning.'
Statsky described Deborah's decision to live as 'the final boss in the video game of her character evolution,' noting that control has been a central theme. Through her relationship with Ava, Deborah learned to let go of that need for control. The finale also wraps up other storylines, including Deborah's new Vegas casino, The Diva, and Jimmy and Kayla's exposure of a corrupt boss at their talent agency.
