In a surprising turn of events, the Max original comedy series Hacks outshone the much-favored and reigning champion The Bear, clinching the prestigious outstanding-comedy award at the 2024 Emmys.
Upon receiving the award, an evidently astonished Paul W. Downs, co-creator of Hacks, expressed his disbelief before expressing gratitude to his team. He also emphasized on the significance of featuring older characters in television shows. “Around one-fifth of our population is aged above 60…yet they constitute only 3% of characters on TV,” he stated. “While I enjoy being a young supporting actor, my aspiration is to be an impactful lead in my later years.”
The second season of The Bear, which had previously bagged six Primetime Emmy awards including outstanding comedy series; lead actor for Jeremy Allen White; supporting actor for Ebon Moss-Bachrach; and supporting actress for Ayo Edebiri,, seemed unbeatable going into Sunday’s Emmys. However, lukewarm reviews for its third season—released just weeks before final voting commenced for its second installment—along with high praise for the third season of Hacks, featuring Jean Smart‘s seasoned comedian character Deborah Vance reigniting her late-night show hosting aspirations, proved too challenging for The Bear.
This marked their first face-off at the Emmys where it initially appeared that The Bear would sweep away all awards with White and Moss-Bachrach repeating their victories in lead-actor and supporting-actor categories respectively. The Bear seemed invincible when Liza Colón-Zayas won her maiden Emmy for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series, outperforming acting stalwarts like Meryl Streep, Carol Burnett, and Hacks‘ own Hannah Einbinder.
The competition heated up when Smart bagged her third Emmy for lead actress, surpassing The Bear‘s Edebiri—who transitioned from supporting to lead actress between the first two seasons. The outstanding-writing-for-a-comedy-series award went to Hacks star and co-creator Downs and his wife, co-creator Lucia Aniello, while the outstanding-directing award was clinched by Bear creator Christopher Storer for his exceptional work on the iconic Christmas episode “Fishes”. This indicated that it was anyone’s game in the most anticipated comedy race of the night.
Carmy and Sydney’s culinary creations were no match for Vance and Ava’s comedic genius. While accepting the best-comedy trophy, Aniello underscored the power of comedy and hinted at an upcoming fourth season of Hacks.“Comedy has a unique ability to bridge gaps. When you share laughter with someone, you find common ground…. It is a powerful tool to challenge authority. So support your local comedian,” said Aniello. “We have to wrap up now as we commence shooting for our next season in five days.”
