I have always been like, “Let’s dress up!” You kind of are dressing up to be a character even if it’s just a night out with your friends. I never felt like, “Oh, I can’t go to the store unless I have makeup on.” I’ve never been like that. Of course there’s the beautiful, natural look which I encourage everyone to feel comfortable in. If I’m going to get my makeup done, I like to go all out.
I really like the ’90s bombshell look, like Pam Anderson! I think there’s something really beautiful about big hair and an overlined lip.
Characters are all part of us or people we know, at least. I used to think I needed to pick one thing like, ‘Oh I’m, ’70s girl,’ but it’s like, we’re not just one thing. When you dress like characters, I feel like it does encourage you because it’s like, “Who do I feel like I am today?” Because we’re so many different things. I’ve always been really into fashion and makeup and hair, but I don’t think I really found my sense of style until I fell in love with myself and went, “Oh, I could do whatever I want and wear what I want to!” Getting excited about dressing a character, even if it’s for like a three-minute video online, has encouraged me that I can wear whatever I want in real life, too. It took me a little while to find my style. Have you always had such a distinct sense of style? I think they wanted her look to be how I usually do my makeup, but with a little more pop of color. In season one, they even were like, “Hey, let’s make Kayla’s makeup like your makeup!” In season one, I always did the eyeliner myself because they wanted it to be like a cute cat eye, but also look like she did it, as opposed to a makeup artist. I’m definitely always asked what I’m feeling or if I have ideas. She is a fashion girl! With dressing Kayla, and doing her hair and makeup, it’s really collaborative. How much of your own style is imbued into her character? Kayla has such fun fashion and beauty looks on the show. “They wanted Kayla’s look to be how I usually do my makeup, but with a little more pop,” she tells me over Zoom from her home in Los Angeles, her face framed by Ginger Spice streaks (a move for her starring role in forthcoming dark comedy Cora Bora, she tells me). And yet she’s charming with her irreverent disposition and highly kitschy style, which hinges on outré hair accessories and ’60s-inspired color-blocked cat eyes. As the big boss’s daughter, inept and entitled at every turn, Kayla embodies Hollywood nepotism.
Stalter plays Kayla, the clumsy assistant to their talent agent Jimmy (played by series co-creator Paul W. In Hacks, Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) is a Las Vegas stand-up legend that reluctantly joins forces with twenty-something comedy writer Ava (Hannah Einbinder) to refresh her material. Over the course of the pandemic, the 31-year-old Ohio native has soared to Internet stardom, introducing masterfully crafted cringey personas through her viral videos (like her Pride Month–inspired “Hi, Gay” short) and as the breakout star of HBO’s Emmy-winning comedy series Hacks. Slipping into character is second nature for Meg Stalter.