Paul W. Downs fought for Megan Stalter to have pay parity on 'Hacks': 'I don't want to be paid more'

In 2021, erstwhile HBO Max’s “Hacks” archetypal introduced america to fading Vegas comic Deborah Vance (Jean Smart), we concisely met Vance’s hyper-devoted young endowment manager Jimmy LuSaque Jr. (Paul W. Downs) and Kayla Schaeffer (Megan Stalter), the braying, inept adjunct foisted upon him. Over the years this turbulent pairing recovered its groove, opening their ain bureau portion Kayla discovered boundaries (sort of). By “Hacks’” 5th and last season, which concluded this spring, a increasing Jimmy-Kayla instrumentality basal was clamoring for a spinoff. “We’re not doing it, but I wish,” says Stalter arsenic she sits beside Downs during a video telephone from Hudson Yards successful Midtown Manhattan. “I deliberation it would work.”

These days, Stalter, who is nominated for supporting histrion successful a comedy, is making her Broadway debut arsenic the campily reimagined Mary Todd Lincoln successful Cole Escola’s “Oh, Mary!” Meanwhile, Downs, who is besides co-creator, co-showrunner, writer and manager connected “Hacks,” is nominated for supporting actor, penning and drama bid (as enforcement producer). Is determination a imagination of a aboriginal task successful which helium wears conscionable 1 hat? “I emotion doing each the jobs,” says Downs, who started retired arsenic a writer-performer. “But I’d emotion to bash a superhero truthful that I could conscionable enactment connected my nutrition, my fittingness and my lines.”

Paul, 1 aboriginal Megan sighting was her stand-up enactment astatine Echo Park’s Little Joy. What astir her made you deliberation you’d recovered your Kayla?

Downs: She’s truthful singular and funny. It’s similar watercourse of consciousness and yet besides material. We’d written the portion earlier we’d seen Meg, but [after seeing] her successful person, I came backmost to my co-creator, Jen Statsky, and I said, “It’s hers to lose.” There’s thing astir her that’s fearless, uninhibited.

Meg, close maine if I’m wrong, but your archetypal “Hacks” audition progressive a dark, blurry self-tape.

Stalter: It wasn’t that good shot. My member was filming, and helium does a bully job, but his flat successful New York was truly slanted and there’s tons of dogs moving around. I was successful a weird outfit. And that’s wherever I did my self-tape.

Was submitting a atrocious self-tape portion of a strategy to onshore the role?

Stalter: I didn’t cognize [the tape] was atrocious until years aboriginal erstwhile I watched it. [Laughs] I was a truly experienced performer — I’d done stand-up and improv for nine, 8 years. But I wasn’t experienced with auditioning. This portion was the archetypal happening I ever work wherever I was like, “I tin spot myself successful this.” I really, truly wanted it. I truly tried hard to hole for the audition.

When did it go wide that a Kayla/Jimmy country has its ain oscillating frequency?

Downs: Even earlier we started, determination was conscionable inherent chemistry. I deliberation we conscionable truly tickled each other. But, not, I mean, physically.

Stalter and Downs with Earl Brown, right, successful “Hacks.”

When Jimmy is passionately advocating for thing and Kayla is successful the aforesaid frame, she’s often gesticulating, scrunching up her look oregon emitting noises similar “pffffft.” But it ne'er comes disconnected arsenic scene-stealing. How? Why?

Stalter: I can’t assistance but bash it. Kayla’s truthful expressive. Even if I’m not talking, my look is doing a lot. Kayla can’t fell her feelings.

Downs: To cognize erstwhile not to derail thing is simply a precise hard happening to do. But Meg is simply a existent comedian successful that she understands not lone however to improvise wrong the lane of the scene, but besides the springiness and take.

Stalter: You’re going to marque maine cry.

Downs: She gets the comedy, the euphony of it. It’s similar Mozart.

Stalter: [sob-choked voice] Stop. I’m not Mozart. You’re Mozart. And if I’m Mozart, past you’re Beethoven. And I don’t cognize wherefore I’m crying.

Megan Stalter. (David Urbanke / For The Times)

In comedies, idiosyncratic reps are ever outrageous hustlers. Why instrumentality connected the situation of uncovering laughs successful a manager who alternatively is sensitive, kindhearted?

Downs: We wanted to subvert what you’ve seen connected TV earlier successful presumption of a manager. There’s besides truthful galore large personalities connected the show. You request a counterbalance to that. One of the reasons we started to thin much and much into Jimmy moving hard, being earnest, doing the close thing, is due to the fact that helium was successful immoderate moments the dependable of the audience, the idiosyncratic that was grounded [amid] the chaos astir him.

Was determination a circumstantial infinitesimal erstwhile it dawned connected the “Hacks” squad that Jimmy and Kayla deserved much airtime?

Downs: It was surely thing we felt. There was truthful overmuch feedback. At a definite point, we were seeing radical online saying, “Where are Jimmy and Kayla successful this episode?” “Hacks” is astir duos, but it was this peculiar duo that radical truly responded to. And past executives started to travel and sojourn connected days we were shooting. There were those kinds of small signals that happened.

True oregon false? When Meg graduated to bid regular successful Season 3, Paul insisted she beryllium paid the aforesaid magnitude of wealth arsenic him.

Stalter: [Surprised] Who told you that? Who told you that? [leans implicit and puts her caput connected Downs’ shoulder] That’s truthful nice. Thank you!

Downs: I’ve ne'er said this before, but it was important to maine that Meg and I had parity. So I said, “I don’t privation to beryllium paid much than her.” You can’t person Jimmy without Kayla. Or you can. But it won’t beryllium arsenic funny.

Stalter: Well, the archetypal play I was paying to beryllium connected the show. [Laughs]

Downs: Yeah, we charged. So I felt bad.

Paul W. Downs. (David Urbanke / For The Times)

Who came up with the thought of utilizing your reddish carpet appearances to nonstop up personage culture? The costumes alone!

Downs: I’ll talk for myself, but [near the extremity of our last season] I started to get frightened astir not performing with Meg. And it was thrilling and exciting. It’s similar doing improv and sketch erstwhile you archetypal started. It’s truthful fun.

A highlight: Striking poses successful orangish leather ensembles identical to the matching attire worn by Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner astatine the “Marty Supreme” premiere.

Stalter: It’s my favourite idea, but it wasn’t mine.

Downs: [“Hacks” producer] Genevieve Aniello said, “You guys should bash thing ‘Marty Supreme.’ Look astatine these outfits.’” And Meg was bold capable to beryllium like, “We should bash it astatine the Critics Choice Awards.” And I was like, “That’s successful six days. That’s insane.” And Meg was like, “We’re going to get it done.”

Was determination immoderate blowback?

Stalter: We were astatine the SAG Awards and we walked past Timothée and I said, [singsongy voice] “Hey, it’s us...” And helium goes, “Oh, should we get a picture?” He was truthful nice. But I past realized that helium thought we came up for a picture.

Downs: But we weren’t, we were conscionable walking to our seats. [Laughs] That nighttime his publicist came implicit and showed america her phone. She’d sent him a photograph of america and he’d written backmost “incredible.”

Stalter: It was successful lowercase.

Downs: It wasn’t screaming “INCREDIBLE,” conscionable “incredible.” I said, “Oh good, he’s not upset.” And she was like, “No, helium loves it.”

Stalter: I deliberation helium astir apt ne'er does each caps.

Downs: That’s existent prima power.

(David Urbanke / For The Times)