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Now that Hacks has concluded its five-season run, Andy Cohen had a bone to pick with showrunner and star Paul W. Downs on live TV.
During Tuesday’s episode of Watch What Happens Live, the talk show host called out Downs over a joke at his expense, which Jean Smart‘s Deborah Vance told in the recent fifth and final season of the HBO Max series.
“Paul, as co-creator and showrunner, you were in charge at Hacks,” prefaced Cohen. “So, I have a question about this particular moment in Season 5.”
Cohen played a clip, in which Deborah (Smart) explains, “The problem with reality shows is you cannot control the narrative. I mean, that’s why I’ve turned down Andy Cohen more than every twink on Fire Island.”
Meg Stalter, who plays Kayla on the series, quipped, “I told him not to put it in. I said, ‘Use someone else’s name.’”
Downs, who co-created the series with Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky, ultimately threw Smart under the bus. “I have to tell you something. Jean Smart is an improviser. She’s an improviser. She improvises like crazy. We can never rein her in. I don’t know why she did that,” said the actor, who plays Jimmy.
After airing the show’s season finale in June, Hacks has broken Emmy records with 24 nominations for season 5, the most ever for a comedy series in a single year.
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https://deadline.com/2026/08/andy-cohen-calls-out-paul-w-downs-hacks-joke-1237032422/
Glenn Garner
Almontather Rassoul
