Hannah Einbinder | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 21, 1995 [1] Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Education | Chapman University (BFA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2018–present |
| Known for | Hacks |
| Mother | Laraine Newman |
| Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (2025) |
| Website | hannaheinbinder |
Hannah Einbinder (born May 21, 1995) is an American actress and stand-up comedian. She is best known for her starring role as struggling comedy writer Ava Daniels in the HBO Max dramedy series Hacks , for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award, as well as three Golden Globe Award nominations.
Einbinder is the daughter of original Saturday Night Live cast member Laraine Newman and writer/director Chad Einbinder. [2] She grew up in Los Angeles in a Reform Jewish family. [3] [4]
As a teenager, Einbinder was a competitive cheerleader. [5] She graduated from Beverly Hills High School [6] and went on to study broadcast journalism at Chapman University before earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in television writing and production. [7] [5] At Chapman, Einbinder joined the school's improv team and had her first experience with stand-up comedy when she opened for Nicole Byer for a campus show. [5] [6]
In 2019, Einbinder appeared in the Just for Laughs festival's New Faces showcase and was named by National Public Radio as one of the 10 standout comedians to watch. [8] She was also named one of Vulture's best new up-and-coming comedians to watch in 2019; she was recognized for "her refreshingly absurdist charm." [9] The same year, she was among the "New Faces of Comedy" at Just For Laughs. [10]
In March 2020, she made her national television debut on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert [11] and at the time was the youngest person to do a stand-up set on the show. It was the show's last on-stage stand-up performance for fifteen months, as the COVID-19 pandemic began soon after the episode aired.
Starting in 2021, she co-starred as Ava in Hacks on HBO Max, together with Jean Smart and Carl Clemons-Hopkins. [12] [13] The show received a total of 15 Emmy nominations, including acting nominations for Einbinder, Smart, and Clemons-Hopkins. [14]
She was on Variety's List of "10 Comics to Watch for 2021". [15] She continued to perform stand-up comedy and toured nationally during the summer of 2022. [16] Max released her debut stand-up special in June 2024, Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go. [17]
In May 2025, it was announced that she would star alongside Gillian Anderson in Jane Schoenbrun's upcoming slasher film, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma . Einbinder is set to play a lead role in the Mubi and Plan B production. [18] [19]
In September 2025, she won her first Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in Hacks Season 4. [20] [21]
Einbinder has cited Dana Gould, Janeane Garofalo, Bo Burnham, Maria Bamford, Sklar Brothers, Marc Maron, and Steve Martin as being among her inspirations and influences. [22] [23]
Einbinder resides in Los Angeles, California. [24] Einbinder is bisexual. [25] She has ADHD. [26]
She is a longtime supporter of the Philadelphia Eagles. [27] [28]
In March 2025, Einbinder spoke about several issues while accepting the HRC Visibility Award. In her speech, she talked about climate change, condemning the "architects of humanity's slow extinction and the destruction of planet Earth." She also denounced the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, the Israeli government's actions in the Gaza war, and the United States government's support for Israel. [29] [30]
In May 2025, she signed a letter criticizing the film industry's "passivity" during the Gaza genocide. [31] She signed the Film Workers for Palestine – Ending Complicity pledge in September 2025, a campaign in which film professionals commit not to work with Israeli film institutions implicated in genocide and apartheid against Palestinians. [32] [33] At the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards later that month, she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and concluded her speech with "Go Birds, fuck ICE, and free Palestine", which was one of the first bleeps of the ceremony. [34] [35] The speech was criticized by some Zionist figures, including Creative Community for Peace, actor Yuval David, and comedian Elon Gold. [36] Other Jewish commentators have said the speech reflects an overall "decoupling from Israel" among young Jewish Americans. [37] Afterwards Einbinder said she had made the speech because she felt she had an "obligation as a Jewish person to distinguish Jews from the State of Israel, because our religion and our culture is such an important and long-standing institution that is really separate to this sort of ethno-nationalist state". [38] [39]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | North Hollywood | Waitress | Cameo |
| TBA | Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma | Post-production [18] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–present | Hacks | Ava Daniels | Main role |
| 2022 | RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars | Herself (guest judge) | Episode: "Drag Race Gives Back Variety Extravaganza" |
| 2023 | History of the World, Part II | Amelia Earhart | Episode: "VI" |
| Strange Planet | Manager / various | Voice role; 10 episodes | |
| Julia | Gretchen Fletcher | Episode: "Shrimp and Grits" |
| Year | Title | Studio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Hannah Einbinder: Everything Must Go | Max | Debut |