Spoilers below for Season 4 of Hacks (available to stream now with an HBO Max subscription). If you are not caught up on the series, proceed at your own risk!
Truth is often stranger than fiction but when fiction mimics the real world in (more or less) real time, it feels far more surreal. Even if it wasn't immediately obvious., TV viewers got a taste of just that after Hacks’ Season 4 concluded, with Stephen Colbert's surprising Late Night cancellation somewhat mirroring fictional late night queen Deborah Vance’s impromptu exit. Now, co-creator Paul W. Downs has weighed in on the wild coincidence.
The news broke in mid-July that CBS cancelled The Late Show in connection with getting Paramount’s merger with Skydance finalized, with a May 2026 end-date set for the late-night staple. Downs, who also plays Vance’s manager Jimmy, explained in more detail the parallels between the two booted hosts with Deadline. He expressed how odd the similarities are, given how things turned out for the fictitious comedian's fate, and that Colbert having a similar shock not even two months later was just bizarre. The actor-writer stated:
What’s happening in late-night happened on the show. Deborah left the show and in the world of Hacks, the franchise ended, so it’s very weird that this is happening with Stephen Colbert right now because a lot of our season [four] was building up to that moment.
Fictitious or not, lightning striking twice for late night in the course of one summer truly is wild. After a near perfect Season 4 premiere of Hacks, the non-stop ups and downs of Ava and Deborah (and head writer Ava's fake firing) teed up Vance’s late night climax perfectly. The 10-episode season led to the star’s realization that she needed her head writer more than gimmicky bits (sorry to Dance Mom).
Reportedly, a major reasoning for Colbert’s ending revolved around the show’s financial failings, at least from the network's perspective, even as fellow late nighter Jimmy Kimmel called B.S. on that idea. The outright parallel for the Hacks cast and crew is spooky, Downs shares. Along with his feelings, he teased that the coming season will be Deborah forging ahead and beyond the late night drama by saying:
[It’s a] surreal moment for us, in light of what’s going on. A lot of our Season 5 is going to be about her sort of reinventing herself and rewriting her legacy after she’s been blamed for the death of late-night.
Again, the coincidence is just so much to wrap your head around. It’ll be interesting to see what lies ahead for Colbert and Vance. As for the fictitious celeb’s future, I fully trust Downs, and his co-creators Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky’s vision, and their witty writing, industry commentary. As for the 61-year-old, he’s been daydreaming of what's next after May 2026.
We’ll just have to wait and see if the Hacks writer room will surprisingly mirror Stephen Colbert and CBS late night’s brouhaha again in Season 5. Regardless of one's own personal feelings, the whole thing has just been surreal to see play out. Fortunately, Colbert seems to be doing alright, viewer wise, in the wake of the news, since ratings are surging even with a brief hiatus.
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