How ‘The Studio’ Predicted Hollywood’s Biggest Twist

Kathryn Hahn never set out to be an explicitly comedic actress. But starting with breakthrough roles in instant classics like Anchorman and Step Brothers, she has slowly but surely established herself as a comedy powerhouse who can go toe-to-toe with everyone from Will Ferrell to Amy Poehler. So it should come as no surprise that she spent 2025 stealing scenes from Seth Rogen on his Apple TV satire The Studio.

In this episode of The Last Laugh podcast, Hahn breaks down how she embraced her character Maya’s signature style, reveals the famous guest star who impressed her most, and explains how the Season 1 cliffhanger predicted the Netflix-Warner Bros. deal that could reshape Hollywood forever. She also shares stories from the sets of her iconic comedy films, discusses the dream come true of entering the Marvel universe as Agatha Harkness, and teases what fans can expect from the upcoming second season of The Studio.

But while there may be some truth to that narrative, it also ignores so many of the nuanced performances she has given over the past 20 years as characters who cannot be reduced to tired tropes. Maya, the head of marketing for Continental Studios, for instance, is unlike any other character Hahn has played. With her aggressively fashionable ensembles and absurd hair extensions, she comes across as both completely alien and utterly familiar to anyone, like Hahn, who has spent too much time in the entertainment industry.

Hahn insists that while there are “flavors” of real-life people she’s encountered in Hollywood, she didn’t have one specific person in mind.

“The clothes walk into the room before she does,” Hahn says, explaining that “more is more” with Maya’s look, to the point where she and costume designer Kameron Lennox had to pull things back. “We wanted to have these huge visors and big goggle glasses,” she says, but the show’s creators Rogen and Evan Goldberg were like, “We can’t see your eyes.”

In addition to being an outrageous slapstick comedy, The Studio proved to be an effective satire about the precarious state of the movie business in 2025. This was especially true when it came to the pending merger hanging over Season 2. In the world of the show, Amazon is making a bid to subsume the fictional Continental Studios, which would potentially lead to many of the main characters losing their jobs. The conceit is eerily similar to Netflix’s attempt to purchase Warner Bros. and upend the Hollywood system as it has functioned for decades.

“It’s a real wake-up call and it’s really scary,” Hahn says of the pending deal. At the same time, she recognizes that she has had some “incredible experiences” making projects with Netflix that she “wouldn’t have been able” to make anywhere else—most notably 2018’s indie drama Private Life, and the Knives Out sequel Glass Onion in 2022. Referencing Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos’ promise to keep releasing Warner Bros. movies in theaters at least for a short window, Hahn adds, “I cannot believe that’s something to be grateful for, but I certainly am.”

Ultimately, Hahn says that no matter how “terrifying” the landscape looks, she remains optimistic about the business. “Because what else can you do?” she asks. “You’ve got to be hopeful.”

Meanwhile, it’s full steam ahead for The Studio Season 2, which Hahn says will start shooting in January. “I’ve heard little bits and bobs about where the show’s going, and I’m so excited,” she says.

Earlier this fall, Rogen popped up at the Venice Film Festival, following The Rock and other stars around with his camera as apparent research for a storyline on the show about glitzy overseas festivals.

Hahn says she “would love to” make that happen, teasing, “I have renewed my passport, just in case.”