'Smash' had a rough first season, but so do most shows when they're trying to find their footing - it's hard to name a great show where its first season isn't it's worst. The show has gone through a heavy makeover for season two, they've already removed hated characters and added new ones, and they've just made another smart decision: hiring Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson for a couple episode arc.

This comes from The Hollywood Reporter, and this points out that for an Oscar winner, Hudson hasn't had much of a career post-'Dreamgirls.' She had a role in the first 'Sex and the City' movie, and turned up recently in 'The Three Stooges,' but for someone with a gold statue, her resume is paltry.

The academy, for better or ill, has two modes: honoring something that was already respected/important in the moment, or picking things that seem different and exciting. Oscars are rarely daring so much as easily seduced by outsiders. They love to pick a newcomer like Anna Paquin for 'The Piano' or foreigners like Jean Dujardin or Roberto Begnini. The problem for Hudson has been that as a non-ingenue type who's also black, there's not as many roles written for her as there are someone like Kate Hudson (who was only nominated for 'Almost Famous'), or Mira Sorvino (who won for 'Mighty Afrodite'). All things considered, 'Smash' is a good home to have.

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