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Boston Globe

HBO ‘Hacks' star Meg Stalter, brings her ‘alt-weird' comedy to Boston Thursday

Because supremely awkward moments — often combined with a deluded bravado — are Stalter's bread and butter. Her distinct brand of alt-comedy — 'alt-weird,' as she puts it — is what vaulted the Ohio native from unknown comic to lockdown-era social media sensation, then onto HBO's Emmy-winning 'Hacks' as the wildly inept, wildly self-assured nepo-baby assistant, Kayla. Advertisement 'I had to audition, but they did have me in mind. I think it got more and more for me,' Stalter, 34, says of the role. Kayla is a classic Meg Stalter character: plunging ahead boldly, blithely breaking social rules. There's something Andy Kaufman-like about Stalter in the wild. That blurry line between joke and reality is where she lives. Prime example: a stand-up gig for an HBO Pride event with Stalter in the persona of a comic bombing a set. Some on Andy Kaufman would've had a field-day with the Internet. Stalter brings her alt-weird stand-up to Megan Stalter accepts the Best Comedy Series award for "Hacks" during the Annual Critics Choice Awards in February in Santa Monica, Critics Choice Association Q: I saw your A: Basically, a fake campaign rally. I'm playing this super-fake politician — not Republican or Democrat — she's all about herself, a rich annoying actor. It's a mix of the kinds of characters I like to play. I like to play someone having a breakdown. Q: This is 'The Prettiest Girl in America' tour. On 'Kimmel' once, you came out with a gown and crown, saying you were just named the 'Prettiest girl in the World.' Advertisement A: Yeah [laughs]. This show is kind of the same energy because there's something so confident and delusional about saying you're the prettiest. It's funny to hear someone talk about themselves like that, which is what you have to do when you're running for president. You have to delusionally believe you're the best. Q: Your characters are so distinct. What will strike you for one? A: My characters are really confident but really nervous. I make fun of things I love. I make fun of actors because I love acting. I make fun of the Midwest, but only because I love it so much. I make fun of church moms because I grew up with people like that, and I love God. I love making fun of things I am. Q: You mentioned " really confident but really nervous' — that feels like you in real life? A: Yeah! I definitely feel like that — the most confident, but also the most clumsy, messy. Q: Growing up in Ohio, your mom was a nurse. But she was always making comedy sketches. A: My mom would do sketches and skits with my aunt with a camcorder. Me and my cousins would get the camera when they were done. We made fake talk-shows. It wasn't as crazy as 'Jerry Springer,' but we did one where my cousin played my boyfriend who was cheating on me. I was like: 'I can't believe you're cheating on me!' Q: Sounds like you always wanted to act. A: That's all I ever wanted to do. My improv teacher said I should do stand-up, and I fell in love with it. I don't think I ever didn't like it. I just didn't know then I could do it [my way]. My stand up's not 'stand-up.' It's alt-weird — like a delusional character doing stand-up. Advertisement Q: How has your stand-up evolved? A: At first I thought I had to do it the way it's traditionally done — you write jokes, you say the jokes. But I'd [think] 'Wouldn't it be crazy if this happened?' Then I'd say a line in character. I didn't figure that out until probably two years in. Q: There's something very Andy Kaufman-like about you. You're playing versions of yourself, which makes it all seem so surreal and blurry. Is he an influence? A: I was obsessed with Andy Kaufman. The idea of watching someone perform and thinking: 'Is this real? What part of the joke are we in on?' That's something I explore in all my characters. Q: At award shows, it feels like you're in character, playing with people at times. A: [laughs] Yeah. I think it's fun to be naughty and silly on the red carpet, because everyone's really serious about is so cool to be there. But in the end, it's also so silly. So it's funny to even pretend on the red carpet, like, What if I was a monster, just so full of myself? Q: Your career took off during the pandemic. A: I was doing Instagram lives and posts because I had no way to perform, and performing makes me feel calm and grounded. I wasn't thinking about getting anything picked up. But I got my first acting job, 'Hacks,' and I moved to LA. Advertisement Q: You told me A: There's a couple scenes where we [ad-lib] a lot, or a line here and there, but [in general] the script is so amazing, it just sounds like that. Every scene we'll say 'Okay, do a crazy [take]' But mostly it's scripted. Q: I feel like you'd fit right in on a Christopher Guest movie. A: Oh, my dream. Definitely an influence. There's nothing more fun than improvising with a character who's strange and really specific. Q: Who else influenced your brand of comedy? A: SNL. Pee-wee Herman when he's mean in the movies. It's like a kid having a tantrum. Q: You mentioned God earlier. You've talked about being bisexual and spiritual, and how that might feel like a dichotomy to some. A: I feel bad when someone grows up loving the church and God, then realizes they're gay and feels they're not accepted. I just feel acceptance and love from God. It breaks my heart that some people feel they can't have [belief] anymore. Because that judgement is from people, not God. Q: Your comedy ' A. Still in the works. That is my heart. I feel like it's such an important story to tell. Q: Your dad is a tattoo artist. You have three from him. One is a bee with a wolf's head. What are the others? Advertisement Q: I have 'Baby, I'm a —' and a picture of a star. And I have a rabbit with a hat on. I've always wanted a rabbit tattoo — I thought it would be funnier with a hat. Interview has been edited and condensed.