Hacks is one episode away from the end, and Deborah is running out of places to hide. Episode 9 premieres Thursday, May 21 at 9:00 p.m. ET on HBO Max, with the series finale following one week later on May 28.

The last few episodes have put real pressure on the fantasy that Deborah can just muscle through the finish. She got the Garden show moving, but the season keeps making the cost visible: the health scare she tried to bury, the strange emotional aftermath of that Ava kiss in “Montecito,” and the exhausting work of keeping her public image polished when every private thing is starting to leak through. Ava is right there with her, helping build the show while also carrying the awkwardness of how much more intimate the partnership has become.

More on the ninth episode below.

Hacks Season 5 episode 9 trailer

Episode 8 added more mess around the edges. Jimmy and Kayla’s company is getting hit with legal trouble, Deborah’s dating life became another little performance, and the AI-comedy subplot made her legacy feel newly vulnerable. Episode 9 should be where those threads stop floating around and start forcing decisions. The Garden show is close, the finale is closer, and Hacks has reached the point where Deborah must stop treating every problem like it’s something she can rewrite five minutes before curtain.

Hacks Season 5 FAQ

When does Season 5 Episode 9 air?

The episodes drop on Thursday, May 21 at 9:00 p.m. ET, streaming on HBO Max. Episodes roll out weekly, with a couple of multi-episode drops, this being the last, leading into the series finale at the end of May.

How many episodes are there?

Season 5 has 10 episodes total, and it’s the final season of the series. HBO Max is sticking with a weekly rollout, letting the tension between Deborah and Ava stretch out instead of getting burned through in a binge.

Who’s starring?