The following article is an excerpt from the new edition of “IndieWire’s The Lead Up,” a weekly newsletter in which our Awards Editor Marcus Jones takes readers on the awards trail, interviewing key figures responsible for some of the most compelling stories of the season, and offering predictions on who will win. Subscribe here to receive the newsletter in your inbox every Tuesday or Wednesday.

HBO Max will be premiering the final episode of its Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy-winning show “Hacks” on Thursday, May 28, but Television Academy members got an advanced screening of the series finale as part of the series’ official For Your Consideration event on Tuesday evening in Los Angeles.

Now, award-winning TV series come and go, but a major Outstanding Comedy Series contender has not gone out on top in quite this way since the great “Schitt’s Creek” Emmys sweep of 2020 (the polarizing “Ted Lasso” Season 3 ended in more of an ellipsis than a period, hence the Apple TV series’ return this summer). 

Coincidentally, the following year is when “Hacks” hit the scene, most notably earning Jean Smart an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series right out the gate, a category she has won for all four seasons of the show so far. Should Smart be nominated and win the Emmy again in September, she would not only be in the record books alongside Mary Tyler Moore and Candice Bergen (and tied for second in most wins in the category), but she would be the first actress ever to win for every single season of her series.

Judging by the way the finale celebration went, that achievement remains well within reach.

Without getting into the details of the final episode of “Hacks” (no spoilers here!), its conclusion left lead duo Smart and Hannah Einbinder in tears coming onto the David Geffen Theater stage inside the Academy Museum for a post-screening Q&A — or as the latter star would put it: “Bawling, sobbing, heaving, weeping, walking directly onto a stage. I wish I could say it was my first time.”

Joined by co-stars Robby Hoffman, Kaitlin Olson, and series creators Lucia Ainello, Jen Statsky, and Paul W. Downs (who also plays talent manager Jimmy on the showbiz comedy), the pair took turns taking a pause to hold back emotion. One mention from Smart of a duet used in the series finale was all it took for Einbinder to collapse onto the floor (and, after a minute, stylishly whip back up with a hair flip, as pictured above). 

There was still plenty of room for comedy, with Olson quickly retorting “No, no I’m good,” at a question of whether or not she’d go on “The Amazing Race” after just detailing how well she milked a goat in the Season 5 episode “D’Amazing Race,” which was set within the world of the Emmy-winning reality competition program on CBS.

When asked what she took away from “Hacks,” her TV debut, stand-up comedian Hoffman said “learning how to play well with others,” resulting in chuckles from the audience.

Most of the responses from the show’s creators mirrored how the show could be both serious and seriously funny at the same time. Responding to issues of how AI is infiltrating the entertainment industry, Statsky shared how her directorial debut “QuikScribbl” reflected what she enjoyed about working on “Hacks.”

“We always challenge ourselves to make sure that it’s funny first, but that it’s also saying something,” said the Emmy-winning TV writer, who had long been hesitant to give directing a try. “That’s the important part about making things, is that you need to doubt yourself and you need to push through that, and there’s this temptation to optimize everything to remove the doubt for us to remove the challenge, and we’ll actually really be cheapening the experience, not only just cheapening the work for people to watch, but for the artists making it.”

The attention to detail, and commitment to staying a comedy, is part of what has driven “Hacks” to remain a top awards contender the entirety of its run. When asked about what she wants its legacy to be, Smart said, “I hope people always think of this as one of the funniest shows ever, one of the most pleasant shows ever, one of the wittiest shows and a show that was able to do stories about serious things and didn’t sound like it was preaching.”

Turning to Einbinder, she added, “To have this one here as my partner has just been incredible.” Though getting ahead of the attendees who ship their characters Deborah Vance and Ava Daniels, Smart quickly responded, “Not that kind of partner, just calm down. Been there, done that,” in reference to their kiss in the Season 5 episode “Montecito.”

“It is like a shrine to our love,” said Einbinder. “The show is riddled with so much love between Jean and I and so many of the moments where they’re getting along and laughing together and everything light and sweet that I can see us there, and so it’s nice to have that.”

The recent Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy winner also said, “The most meaningful legacies that the show holds are that it feels like kind of a roadmap to connection and discourse inter-generationally. … It has also become this very safe and warm and joyous place for queer people at a time where our community is experiencing so much violence.”

Smart, following her lead, also mentioned how proud they were of the environment they all established behind the scenes of “Hacks.” “One of the things I’m the most proud of about this show is that, on more than one occasion, someone who was a day player or an extra or someone who was just in and out briefly said, ‘This is the most welcoming set I have ever, ever been on,’” she said.

Bringing the panel to a close, Downs said, “In a world where free speech is under attack and comedy is under attack and queer people are under attack, I do feel like I hope that this show, because we tried to celebrate the craft of comedy, the making of comedy, and also what it does for people, I hope that that is the legacy of the show.”

Getting choked up, he mustered one more response: “[‘Hacks’] is about finding your people and I hope that that’s the legacy of the show, that people who love it and watch it have found their people through it.”

See IndieWire’s full list of 2026 Emmy predictions, complete with frontrunners, contenders, and long shots on our website. As a reminder, my email is majones@indiewire.com if you’d like to share any feedback.