Clemons-hopkins ‘very different’ than character on HBO’S ‘Hacks’
Carl Clemons-hopkins is hard to miss.
Despite a measured, amiable demeanor, the stage veteran who recently received their first Emmy nomination for their supporting work in the comedy “Hacks” somehow seems even bigger than their frame, which the actor says is “6-foot-4 and change.” Clemonshopkins, who uses the pronouns they/them, was born and raised in Lithonia, Georgia — population: less than 2,000.
“Maybe, maybe. I mean, my world was well under 2,000. These are all really small, little towns about an hour and a half outside of Atlanta. I call it ‘rural-adjacent.’ ”
Clemons-hopkins kicked around stages for more than a decade before landing the role of Marcus, the ultra-driven business manager of Jean Smart’s aging comedian on HBO’S “Hacks” during the pandemic. So how does a queer, nonbinary Black kid from tiny, rural-adjacent Georgia wind up on big stages in big cities, and now with a hit show and an Emmy nomination?
“My parents would take me and my cousin to see (Alvin) Ailey. My dad would take me to the opera. I was into theater since I was 6,” Clemons-hopkins says. “I majored in musical theater. In my mind, it was like, ‘There’ll be so much opportunity. I’ll come north, the land of opportunity.’ ”
After college in Philadelphia, Clemons-hopkins did the struggling-actor thing in New York, bartending and managing restaurants. Then was cast as “Man 6” in the ensemble of the Chicago production of “Hamilton” while
understudying George Washington, Hercules Mulligan/james Madison and co-lead Aaron Burr.
But the play that helped Clemons-hopkins blossom creatively was a world premiere by R. Eric Thomas, “Time Is on Your Side.” “It was my first time getting to play a Black, queer character. It was written by a Black, queer playwright, and he said something to me that blew my entire mind: ‘You know, queer history is your history too.’
“I had separated in my mind my Black identity from my queer identity. He introduced me to the fact that ‘They are all in you, so they’re one,’ and it could actually be part of the storytelling of your career. Don’t limit yourself, you can include this in your artistic journey.”
While Clemons-hopkins uses they/them, “I ascertained very quickly that Marcus is a ‘him’ because my personal exploration of my identity has come from a lot of time that I devote to that, a lot of research and a lot of unearthing whatever. That’s time that Marcus doesn’t allow himself,” Clemons-hopkins says
with a gentle laugh.
Beyond the sheer joy of the series, Clemonshopkins says, they’ve also learned to be more comfortable in the work, with help from veteran actor Smart. “She has made me a more compassionate person — to others, but also to myself. She has a wonderful grace and a wonderful humor and a wonderful ease. That makes me beat myself up less.”
That kindness to self hasn’t translated to Marcus though. “We’re very different people. I think one thing we share is a respect for work ethic. Our execution of it is very different. His execution is complete immersion, whereas mine is, ‘Respect and honor this as part of your schedule, and you are also part of your schedule.’ I put him in the category of a bit repressed, nonpracticing homosexual with a fulltime job.
“We share an experience of the world, we share a body type. I think with Wilson (Marcus’ love interest), he gets to just shut it all off and be his soft, squishy self.
“We both have soft, squishy selves.”