By the end of Hacks‘ “Number One Fan” episode, Ava Daniels has been called a “stupid bitch,” blindsided by a supposed new fan, and forced to sit with all the anxieties that come with turning 30. So when Deborah Vance walks her into a surprise birthday party — complete with Ava’s mom, her long-lost eighth grade best friend and one final jaw-dropping gift — the moment lands exactly the way it’s supposed to.
That final surprise? Jesse McCartney stepping out to serenade Ava with “Beautiful Soul,” turning one of the episode’s funniest payoffs into its most unexpectedly heartfelt.
For viewers, it was a perfect nostalgic button. For Hannah Einbinder, who plays Ava, it was also something very real.
“Season 1, there was a scene in Ava’s childhood bedroom when her father passes and she goes back for the funeral and Deborah joins her there,” Einbinder told Gold Derby. “On the wall was a Jesse McCartney poster because Jen [Statsky] came up to me and asked, ‘Who do you think Ava would have on her bedroom walls?’ I was like, ‘Probably Jesse McCartney because my childhood bedroom was plastered with him.’”
That tiny detail, tucked into Ava’s backstory four seasons ago, eventually became the setup for one of Hacks’ sweetest full-circle moments.
“And the fact that I got to meet him was a once-in-a-lifetime gift,” Einbinder said. “I was crying, and they had to use a take where I wasn’t. It was really hard to find because I was so moved by his music and by seeing him there. In character, I’m thinking, ‘This is such a sweet gesture Deborah has done for Ava,’ but I’m also looking around at Poppy [Liu], Meg [Stalter], Rose [Abdoo], Mark [Indelicato], Jane [Adams], Jean [Smart] — these people I love — and Jesse McCartney. It was this crazy full-circle moment.”
She summed it up in classic Hannah fashion: “Honestly, I could have done ayahuasca and gotten the same result — just healing all the way down.”
As it turns out, McCartney had been aware of Ava’s crush long before the cameras rolled on Episode 2.
“The way this came about was really special,” McCartney told Gold Derby. “I watched Season 1 with my wife and quickly became a fan of the show. Someone had texted me, so I went back and rewatched one of the episodes because apparently one of my posters was on Ava’s bedroom wall. I thought that was really odd and cool.”
So he reached out directly to Einbinder.
“I just said, ‘Hey, Hannah, I want you to know I’m a huge fan. I think you’re hilarious. I think the show is wonderful. And also — was that me? Was that a Tiger Beat poster I saw?’”
Einbinder quickly confirmed it was no coincidence: Ava’s teenage dream had always been Jesse McCartney.
McCartney said their exchange ended with an open invitation: “If there’s anything I can do — if you ever want to hang out, meet or work on something — let me know.” Years later, Hacks finally cashed in on that promise.
“Getting to meet her was such a thrill,” he said. “She’s so lovely, and so is Jean, and that whole cast is incredibly talented. It was nice to have a small moment on such a successful show.”
McCartney said filming the birthday scene was as joyful as it looks onscreen.
“We were laughing the entire shooting process, so it was lots of fun,” he said. “Getting to perform for Hannah and watching her tear up through the scene was really special.”
McCartney understood why the moment hit so hard for Einbinder. For anyone who came of age in the early 2000s, “Beautiful Soul” wasn’t just a hit song — it was the soundtrack to middle school crushes, diary entries, and bedroom wall posters.
McCartney said there’s a reason “Beautiful Soul” — his breakout 2004 hit — still lands all these years later, especially in a scene like this one.
“I think the message is very positive,” he said. “It’s one of those songs that has stood the test of time because it makes people feel good.”
That emotion is what makes the scene hit so hard. Much of “Number One Fan” is about Ava feeling untethered: she opens up about wanting to create her own show, worries about turning 30 — and where she is in life — and then gets blindsided when a supposed fan named “Sidney” reveals she only got close to Ava to get near Deborah.
“I think this was a moment where Deborah could do something great for Ava,” McCartney said. “You can tell from Ava’s reaction that it was really touching. Ava’s reaction says it all.”
For Ava, it’s the kind of birthday surprise she wrote about in her middle-school journal. For Hannah Einbinder, it was a real-life dream come true. And for Hacks, it’s one of those perfectly calibrated moments where the joke lands — and so does the heart.
