'Will & Grace' Returns for 10-Episode Run Later This Year
After months of back and forth, we finally have the official confirmation that Will & Grace will be returning to NBC for 10 episodes during the 2017–2018 season.
The hype—and confusion—started in September when Hamptonite Debra Messing, who plays Grace, posted a 20-second teaser to Twitter with the hidden message “Will and Grace is back.” A few hours later, Sean Hayes, with all the subtlety of his flamboyant character Jack, posted on his own Twitter account, “We’re baaaaaaack!” What many fans thought might be the epic revival of the pioneering gay sitcom, turned out to only be a 10-minute Hillary Clinton endorsement (albeit a hilarious one).
For a few months, fans weren’t sure what to expect. While it was possible that the 10-minute clip was as close to a revival as they were going to get, others were hopeful that the clip was only a preview to something bigger in the works. On December 22, Leslie Jordan, who played recurring favorite Beverly Leslie on the show, confirmed optimistic fans’ theories in a radio interview with KPBS-FM, when he said that NBC had ordered 10 episodes that would be airing in July.
Then on January 2, Messing responded on Twitter to say that Jordan was sadly wrong and that there was, “Nothing beyond talks.” But as of January 18, those talks have become a reality. And that means that later this year, fans will finally get to catch up with Will (Eric McCormack), Grace, Jack and Karen (Megan Mullally).
Will & Grace aired on NBC for eight seasons (1998-2006) and was one of the successful primetime shows to feature gay main characters and to introduce the masses to gay culture. Even Vice President Joe Biden has praised the show for improving public opinion of the gay community, saying that, “Will & Grace probably did more to educate the American public than almost anything anybody has ever done so far.” The show was nominated for 83 Emmy Awards, winning 16 of them. Messing, McCormack, Hayes, Mullally and Jordan have all been awarded Best Actor/Actress in their respective roles throughout the sitcom’s run.