| Will & Grace | |
|---|---|
 Theintertitle used in the show's2017 revival | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Jonathan Wolff |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 11 |
| No. of episodes | 246(list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Cinematography | Tony Askins Gary Baum |
| Editors | Peter Chakos Peter D. Beyt |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | September 21, 1998 (1998-09-21) – May 18, 2006 (2006-05-18) |
| Release | September 28, 2017 (2017-09-28) – April 23, 2020 (2020-04-23) |
Will & Grace is an American televisionsitcom created byMax Mutchnick andDavid Kohan. Set inNew York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friendsWill Truman (Eric McCormack), agay lawyer, andGrace Adler (Debra Messing), astraight interior designer. The show was originally broadcast onNBC from September 21, 1998, to May 18, 2006, for a total of eight seasons, before returning to NBC on September 28, 2017, and permanently ending on April 23, 2020.Will & Grace has been one of the most successful television series with gay principal characters.[1]
Despite initial criticism for its stereotypical portrayal of gay characters, it went on to become a staple of NBC'sMust See TV Thursday night lineup and was met with continued critical acclaim. It was ensconced in theNielsen top 20 for half of its 1998–2006 network run. The show was the highest-rated sitcom among adults 18–49 from 2001 to 2005.Will & Grace earned 18Primetime Emmy Awards and 96 nominations. Each main actor received an Emmy Award throughout the series. In 2014, theWriters Guild of America placed the sitcom at number 94 in their list of the 101 best-written TV series of all time.[2]
Since the final episode of the 1998–2006 run aired, the sitcom has been credited with helping and improving public opinion of theLGBT community, with then U.S. Vice PresidentJoe Biden commenting that the show "probably did more to educate the American public" on LGBT issues "than almost anything anybody has ever done so far".[3] In 2014, theSmithsonian Institution added anLGBT history collection to their museum which included items fromWill & Grace. Curator Dwight Blocker Bowers stated that the sitcom used "comedy to familiarize a mainstream audience withgay culture" in a way that was "daring and broke ground" in American media.[4]
During its original run,Will & Grace was filmed in front of a live studio audience (most episodes and scenes) on Tuesday nights,[5] at Stage 17 inCBS Studio Center. A long-running legal battle between both the original executive producers and creators and NBC took place between 2003 and 2007. Will and Grace's apartment was put on display at theEmerson College Library, donated by series creator Max Mutchnick.[6] When the set was removed in 2014, rumors came up about a cast reunion, but the actors involved denied that such a reunion was planned, explaining it was merely being moved.
In September 2016, the cast reunited for a 10-minute special (released online), urging Americans to vote in the2016 presidential election.[7] After its success, NBC announced that the network was exploring the idea of puttingWill & Grace back into production.[8] In January 2017, NBC confirmed the series' return for aninth season, for the 2017–2018 television season,[9][10] which was eventually expanded to 16 episodes.[11] This was followed by renewals for 18-episode tenth and eleventh seasons.[12] On July 25, 2019, it was announced that the eleventh season would be the final season of the series[13] which premiered on October 24, 2019,[14] and concluded on April 23, 2020.[15]
Will & Grace is set inNew York City and focuses on the relationship between Will Truman, agay lawyer, and his best friend Grace Adler, aJewish woman who owns an interior design firm. Alongside them are their friends Karen Walker, a demonicallyalcoholic socialite, and Jack McFarland, a gay actor. The interplay of relationships features the trials and tribulations of dating,marriage,divorce, andcasual sex; as well as comical key stereotypes ofgay andJewish culture.
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| Season | Episodes | Originally released | Rank[16] | Rating[16] | Viewers (millions)[16] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | ||||||
| 1 | 22 | September 21, 1998 (1998-9-21) | May 13, 1999 (1999-5-13) | 40 | — | 12.72 | |
| 2 | 24 | September 21, 1999 (1999-9-21) | May 23, 2000 (2000-5-23) | 44 | — | 12.96 | |
| 3 | 25 | October 12, 2000 (2000-10-12) | May 17, 2001 (2001-5-17) | 14 | 11.3 | 18.66 | |
| 4 | 27 | September 27, 2001 (2001-9-27) | May 16, 2002 (2002-5-16) | 9 | 11.0 | 18.43 | |
| 5 | 24 | September 26, 2002 (2002-9-26) | May 15, 2003 (2003-5-15) | 11 | 11.0 | 18.34 | |
| 6 | 24 | September 25, 2003 (2003-9-25) | April 29, 2004 (2004-4-29) | 13 | 10.4 | 15.79 | |
| 7 | 24 | September 16, 2004 (2004-9-16) | May 19, 2005 (2005-5-19) | 44 | — | 10.41 | |
| 8 | 24 | September 29, 2005 (2005-9-29) | May 18, 2006 (2006-5-18) | 61 | — | 9.08 | |
| Webisode | 1 | September 23, 2016 (2016-9-23) | — | — | — | ||
| 9 | 16 | September 28, 2017 (2017-9-28) | April 5, 2018 (2018-4-5) | 36 | — | 8.85 | |
| 10 | 18 | October 4, 2018 (2018-10-4) | April 4, 2019 (2019-4-4) | 72 | — | 5.31 | |
| 11 | 18 | October 24, 2019 (2019-10-24) | April 23, 2020 (2020-4-23) | 82 | — | 4.01 | |
| Special | April 23, 2020 (2020-4-23) | — | — | 2.97 | |||
Creators ofWill & Grace and real-life friendsMax Mutchnick andDavid Kohan modeled the show after Mutchnick's relationship with childhood friend Janet Eisenberg, a New York City voice-over casting agent. Mutchnick, who is gay, met Eisenberg while rehearsing a play atTemple Emanuel inBeverly Hills, California, when aged 13.[17] He was the main star of theHebrewschool musical, while she was a student in the drama department. About three years later, she introduced him to Kohan, the son of comedy writerAlan Kohan, in the drama department atBeverly Hills High School. "Max and Janet seemed to have a lovely rapport, but the romantic element confused me, and it confused them as well", Kohan later recalled. "They went out for a couple of years, then they went off to different colleges. And Maxcomes out of the closet, springs it on her—and she was stunned. It was a shocking revelation for her, so I kind of functioned as a liaison between the two of them, because they both still really loved each other."[17]
While Kohan practiced hisshuttle diplomacy, he and Mutchnick began developing sitcom ideas, which prompted the pair to start writing as a duo.[17] They eventually landed staff jobs onHBO's adult-themed sitcomDream On and executive produced the NBC sitcomBoston Common.[17] In 1997, they developed an ensemble comedy about six friends, two of them based on Mutchnick and Eisenberg.[17] At the same time,Warren Littlefield, the then-president ofNBC Entertainment, was seeking another relationship comedy for the network asMad About You was going off the air.[18][19] When Kohan and Mutchnick pitched their idea, which centered on three couples, one of which was a gay man living with a straight woman, Littlefield was not excited about the first two couples, but wanted to learn more about the gay and straight couple, so Mutchnick and Kohan were sent to create a pilot script centering on those two characters.[19] While Kohan and Mutchnick elaborated on the pilot script, they spent four tense months faxing Littlefield the box office grosses from hit films with gay characters such asThe Birdcage andMy Best Friend's Wedding.[17]
NBC was positive about the project, but there was still some concern that the homosexual subject matter would cause alarm.Ellen DeGeneres's sitcomEllen, which aired onABC, was canceled the year beforeWill & Grace premiered because ratings had plummeted after the show became "too gay."[20][21] Despite the criticism ABC received for DeGeneres'scoming out episode, "The Puppy Episode", Kohan said, "there's no question that show made it easier forWill & Grace to make it on the air." He added: "Will & Grace had a better shot at succeeding whereEllen failed, however, because Will has known about his homosexuality for 20 years. He's not exploring that awkward territory for the first time, as Ellen did. The process of self-discovery and the pain most gay men go through is fascinating, but the average American is put off by it."[22]
NBC went to sitcom directorJames Burrows to see what he thought of the homosexual subject matter and if an audience would be interested in the show.[24] Burrows liked the idea and when he first read the script in November 1997, he decided that he wanted to direct it. Burrows said, "I knew that the boys had captured a genre and a group of characters I have never read before."[18] The filming of the pilot began on March 15, 1998. The actors behind Will and Grace, Eric McCormack and Debra Messing, were positive about the series and they thought it had the potential to last long on television. McCormack said: "When shooting was finished that night, Debra and I were sitting on the couch and looking at each other and I said, 'We're gonna be on this set for a while.' And we sort of clasped hands, but we didn't want to say anything beyond that and jinx it."[25]
The part of Will Truman went to Eric McCormack, who was the first actor cast in the series.[23] Having played gay characters several times in his career, McCormack did not have a problem with it and thought his character could become a "poster boy for some gay movement", in the way that DeGeneres became a spokesperson with her character.[26] Sean Hayes was invited to audition for Jack after an NBC casting executive saw him in a role in the indie gay romance filmBilly's Hollywood Screen Kiss. Even though Hayes enjoyed the script when he read it, he threw it away and decided not to try out for the audition until he was sent the script again.[27] Megan Mullally initially auditioned for the role of Grace Adler, but admitted that she did not want to audition for the part of Karen since it seemed too similar toChristine Baranski’s part onCybill. Once Mullally got the role, she was able to put her own spin on the character and add some fun quirks to Karen.[28] By contrast, Debra Messing, with whom Mullally had first worked onNed and Stacey, was initially unsure if she wanted to play the role of Grace.[29] The last actor to be cast, she later admitted that director Burrows was the reason for doingWill & Grace.[24] The production team once admitted that they got her to finally say yes once she was drunk at a party.
In January 2017, NBC closed a deal for a new 10-episode season of the series, which aired during the 2017–18 season. Hayesexecutive produced this season as well as creators/executive producers Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Veteran directorJames Burrows is on board to direct and executive produce.[30] In April 2017, the episode order was increased to 12 episodes. In August 2017, it was extended again to 16 episodes, and a 13-episode tenth season was ordered.[31] The revival was filmed at Stage 22 atUniversal Studios Hollywood, as opposed to Stage 17 atCBS Studio Center. In March 2018, NBC ordered five more episodes for the revival's second season, bringing the total to 18 episodes, and it was also renewed for an 18-episode third (eleventh) and final season.[32]
With the release of the ninth season of the series, NBC also releasedWill & Grace: After Party, anaftershow hosted byKristin dos Santos. The guests of the aftershow are composed of cast and crew from the series, includingDavid Kohan,Max Mutchnick, and the series' stars, to discuss the development and behind-the-scenes production of the series. The series premiered on NBC.com on September 29, 2017.[33][34]
| No. | Title | Episode discussed | Guest(s) | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Episode 1" | 11 Years Later | Eric McCormack | September 29, 2017 (2017-09-29) |
| 2 | "Episode 2" | Who's Your Daddy | Harry Connick Jr. andBobby Cannavale | October 6, 2017 (2017-10-06) |
| 3 | "Episode 3" | Emergency Contact | Jane Lynch and Glenda Rovello | October 12, 2017 (2017-10-12) |
| 4 | "Episode 4" | Grandpa Jack | Minnie Driver | October 19, 2017 (2017-10-19) |
| 5 | "Episode 5" | How to Succeed in Business Without Really Crying | Leslie Jordan | October 26, 2017 (2017-10-26) |
| 6 | "Episode 6" | Rosario's Quinceañera | Megan Mullaly,David Kohan, andMax Mutchnick | November 2, 2017 (2017-11-02) |
In December 2003, in the midst of the series' sixth season, executive producers and creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick sued NBC and NBC Studios. Alleging that the network sold the rights to the series in an attempt to keep profits within the NBC family, Kohan and Mutchnick felt that they were cheated out of considerable profits because the network did not shop the show to the highest bidder. Another allegation against the network was that during the first four seasons of the series, the studio licensed the rights for amounts that were insufficient for covering production costs, thus leading to extraordinarily large production deficits.[35] Three months later, NBC filed a countersuit against Kohan and Mutchnick stating that the co-creators were expected to act as an independent third party in the negotiations between NBC and its subsidiary, NBC Studios (since subsumed intoUniversal Television).[36]
With a pending lawsuit and production beginning on other projects, Kohan and Mutchnick were absent on theWill & Grace set for most of its final seasons. They wrote the season 4 episode, "A Buncha White Chicks Sittin' Around Talkin'" and did not return to the writers' seat until the series finale four years later. Three years after NBC's countersuit and one year after the series ended, the legal battle between NBC and Kohan and Mutchnick ended in 2007 when all parties agreed on a settlement, with the series creators being awarded $49 million of the $65 million they sued for.[37]
Will & Grace entered off-network syndication in 2002, and remained in local syndication until 2008. In 2002WGN America acquired the cable rights to air the series, where it aired until 2005 whenLifetime Television acquired the cable rights to the series. After eight years and the expiration of Lifetime's contract, the rights to the series were picked up byWeTV andLogo TV in 2013, with both eventually letting the rights lapse.[citation needed]
The streaming serviceHulu later picked up the show, in anticipation of the show's revival in 2017, with the entire series also carried on NBC.com. Around the same time, NBC's classic subchannel networkCozi TV picked up the series and airs it four times nightly, and promotes it as "The Original Series" to avert confusion with the current-day run.[38]
In theUnited Kingdom, the series was broadcast onChannel 4 up until its season finale in 2006. The revival of the show was picked up byChannel 5 instead, premiering in January 2018. The channel chose not to broadcast any further episodes, and the tenth (and eleventh) seasons went straight to a DVD release in August 2019 and July 2020 respectively,[39] beforeComedy Central – a sister channel – began the tenth season in January 2021.[40]
In Ireland, the series first aired onTV3 Ireland until its conclusion in 2006. It was confirmed in January 2018 rival channelRTÉ2 picked up the broadcasting rights for the 2017–18 season run, beginning in February 2018.[citation needed]
The show has been criticized for not fully challenging stereotypes. "Battles and Hilton-Morrow (2002) analyseWill & Grace with regard to its dependence on traditional sitcom formulas and argue that the narratives diminish any of the show's potentially subversive themes...Kanner (2003) notes that the gayness ofWill & Grace is normalized because the driving force of the show is their heterosexual friendship. Will's sexuality is assumed and incorporated into the show mostly as comic source and rarely as driving narrative."[41]
The show garnered a fair amount of criticism and negative reviews upon its debut in 1998, most of which compared the show to the recently canceledABC sitcomEllen. One such review said, "IfWill & Grace can somehow survive a brutal time period oppositefootball andAlly McBeal, it could grow into a reasonably entertaining little anomaly—that is, a series about a man and a woman who have no sexual interest in one another. But don't bet on it. If it's doomed relationships viewers want, they'll probably opt forAlly."[42] As popular as the show came to be, particularly among gay viewers,Will & Grace continuously dealt with criticism for having a limited view of the gay community and for reinforcingstereotypes when some felt it should have torn them down.[43]
The series finale was heavily promoted by NBC, and McCormack, Messing, Mullally and Hayes appeared onThe Oprah Winfrey Show andThe Today Show to bid farewell, on May 10 and 18, respectively. NBC devoted a two-hour block in its primetime schedule on May 18, 2006, for theWill & Grace send-off. An hour-long series retrospective, "Say Goodnight, Gracie", featuring interviews with the cast, crew, and guest stars, preceded the hour-long series finale. Series creators and executive producers Kohan and Mutchnick, who had not served as writers since the season 4 finale, penned the script for "The Finale". Regarding the finale, Mutchnick stated, "We wrote about what you want to have happen with people you love... All the things that matter in life, they end up having."[44]
The ninth season was met with generally positive reviews. OnRotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 86% based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Will & Grace reunites its ever-hilarious cast for a revival season that picks up right where the show left off 11 years ago—adding a fresh relevance and a series of stories that make sharply funny use of the passage of time."[45] OnMetacritic, the season has a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[46]
Will & Grace has been nominated for 83Primetime Emmy Awards, winning 18 of them, including once forOutstanding Comedy Series in 2000. McCormack, Messing, Hayes, and Mullally each won at least one Emmy Award for their respective performances, becoming one of four live-action sitcoms, along withAll in the Family,The Golden Girls andSchitt's Creek, where all the principal actors have won at least one Emmy Award. Mullally also won a second time for her performance in 2006, a year whenWill & Grace was nominated for 10 Emmys for its final season. The year before, the show had garnered 15 nominations, tied withDesperate Housewives as the series receiving the most nominations. This was almost an all-time record; the two shows were second behindThe Larry Sanders Show, with 16 nominations in 1996.[citation needed]
With three each, both Hayes and Mullally held the record of winning the mostScreen Actors Guild Awards for the categories Best Performance by an Actor in a Comedy Series and Best Performance by an Actress in a Comedy Series, respectively, for their roles inWill & Grace; however,Tina Fey went on to tie with Mullally andAlec Baldwin went on to surpass Hayes, both for their roles on the series30 Rock.Will & Grace has won severalGLAAD Media Awards for its advocacy of thegay community. Despite 30 total nominations,Will & Grace never won aGolden Globe Award.[citation needed]
The show debuted on Mondays beginning on September 21, 1998, and steadily gained in popularity, culminating when it moved to Thursday night as part of NBC'sMust See TV line-up. The show ultimately became ahighly rated television show in the United States, earning a top-twenty rating during four of its eight seasons, including one season at No. 9. From 2001 to 2005,Will & Grace was the highest-rated sitcom among adults aged 18–49. However, when the show lostFriends as its lead-in after the2003–04 season,Will & Grace began shedding viewers and slipped out of the top 20 during its last two seasons.[citation needed]
"The Finale" drew over 18 million viewers,[47][48] ranking No. 8 for the week, easily making it the most watched episode of seasons seven & eight. While the season eight finale is considered a ratings success, it is far from being the most watched episode ofWill & Grace—that accolade remains with the season four episode "A Chorus Lie", which aired on February 7, 2002, and ranked No. 8 for the week. When the show was at the height of its popularity (seasons 3–5), ranking in the Top 10 was a common occurrence, but the finale's Top 10 rank was the only such rank for season 8 and the first such rank since the season 7 premiere "FYI: I Hurt, Too". Although it had slipped down the overall rankings,Will & Grace ended its final, eleventh season as NBC's most watched comedy series.[49]
| Season | Timeslot (ET) | Episodes | First aired | Last aired | TV season | Viewership rank | Avg. viewers (millions) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Viewers (millions) | Date | Viewers (millions) | ||||||
| 1 | Monday 9:30 pm(1–8) Tuesday 9:30 pm(9–17) Thursday 8:30 pm(18–22) | 22 | September 21, 1998 (1998-9-21) | 11.82[50] | May 13, 1999 (1999-5-13) | 18.14[51] | 1998–99 | 40 | 12.72 |
| 2 | Tuesday 9:00 pm | 24 | September 21, 1999 (1999-9-21) | 16.09[52] | May 23, 2000 (2000-5-23) | 15.52[53] | 1999–2000 | 44 | 13.00 |
| 3 | Thursday 9:00 pm | 25 | October 12, 2000 (2000-10-12) | 24.32[54] | May 17, 2001 (2001-5-17) | 20.50[55] | 2000–01 | 14 | 18.66 |
| 4 | 27 | September 27, 2001 (2001-9-27) | 20.64[56] | May 16, 2002 (2002-5-16) | 23.65[57] | 2001–02 | 9 | 18.43 | |
| 5 | 24 | September 26, 2002 (2002-9-26) | 21.45[58] | May 15, 2003 (2003-5-15) | 20.28[59] | 2002–03 | 11 | 18.34 | |
| 6 | Thursday 9:00 pm(1–12, 22–24) Thursday 8:30 pm(13–21) | 24 | September 25, 2003 (2003-9-25) | 20.29[60] | April 29, 2004 (2004-4-29) | 20.53[61] | 2003–04 | 16 | 15.79 |
| 7 | Thursday 8:30 pm | 24 | September 16, 2004 (2004-9-16) | 16.55[62] | May 19, 2005 (2005-5-19) | 7.92[63] | 2004–05 | 44 | 10.41 |
| 8 | Thursday 8:30 pm(1–9) Thursday 8:00 pm(10–24) | 24 | September 29, 2005 (2005-9-29) | 9.81[64] | May 18, 2006 (2006-5-18) | 18.43[65] | 2005–06 | 61 | 9.08 |
| 9 | Thursday 9:00 pm | 16 | September 28, 2017 (2017-9-28) | 10.19[66] | April 5, 2018 (2018-4-5) | 3.63[67] | 2017–18 | 36 | 8.85 |
| 10 | Thursday 9:00 pm(1–8, 17–18) Thursday 9:30 pm(9–16) | 18 | October 4, 2018 (2018-10-4) | 3.96[68] | April 4, 2019 (2019-4-4) | 2.99[69] | 2018–19 | 72 | 5.31 |
| 11 | Thursday 9:30 pm(1–5) Thursday 9:00 pm(6–18) | 18 | October 24, 2019 (2019-10-24) | 2.28[70] | April 23, 2020 (2020-4-23) | 3.14[71] | 2019–20 | 82 | 4.01 |
The series was the first prime-time television series on American television to star openly gay lead characters, making it the highest-profile presence of LGBT characters on American broadcast television sinceEllen's eponymous lead character'scoming-out in the 1997 "Puppy Episode". It has also been heralded as responsible for opening the door to a string of gay-themed television programs, such asQueer as Folk,Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, andBoy Meets Boy. In 2004, the cast of the show were listed inBravo's100 Greatest TV Characters.[72] In 2012,The Washington Post rankedWill & Grace the ninth-best NBC comedy of all time.[73] In 2014, scripts, props, and set decor fromWill & Grace were donated to theNational Museum of American History, which is part of the Smithsonian.[74] In December 2023,Variety rankedWill & Grace #93 on its list of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time.[75]
In May 2012, during aMeet the Press interview with hostDavid Gregory, then U.S. Vice PresidentJoe Biden cited the series as an influence in American thinking regarding LGBT rights, saying, "I thinkWill & Grace did more to educate the American public than almost anything anybody has ever done. People fear that which is different. Now they're beginning to understand."[76] In the same interview, Biden stated that he was "absolutely comfortable" withsame-sex marriage, a statement which was followed on May 9 by PresidentBarack Obama's speaking in favor of it.[77] The day after Obama's statement, series co-creator Mutchnick later toldCBS This Morning that Biden had spoken similar words at a private function which Mutchnick and his husband had attended two weeks prior to Biden's statement, although a White House official was cited byCBS This Morning'sBill Plante as asserting that theMeet the Press interview was not a "trial balloon" for the statement.[78] Both Mutchnick and Kohan praised Biden's statement, but were critical of Obama's stance on marriage during the time between Biden's and Obama's statements.[79]
Lions Gate Home Entertainment andNBC Enterprises has released all eight seasons ofWill & Grace on DVD in Region 1, 2, and 4. The show was re-released and re-packaged on October 3, 2011, on region 2.Universal Studios Home Entertainment currently holds the rights to the series in Region 1. On August 29, 2017, Universal re-released season 1 of the series on DVD in a 3-disc set. The re-release carries over all bonus features from the original Lionsgate release. It is unknown whether or not Universal will re-release the rest of the series. On June 12, 2018, Universal released season 9 on DVD and made-on-demand Blu-Ray, asWill & Grace: The Revival – Season One in region 1. Season 10 was released asWill & Grace: The Revival – Season Two on DVD and made-on-demand Blu-Ray on June 18, 2019.
| Season | Ep# | Discs | Release dates | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 4 | ||||
| 1 | 22 | 4 | August 12, 2003 | August 30, 2004 | 2004 |
|
| 2 | 24 | 4 | March 23, 2004 | August 30, 2004 | 2004 |
|
| 3 | 25 | 4 | September 7, 2004 | August 30, 2004 | 2005 |
|
| 4 | 27 | 4 | August 16, 2005 | August 30, 2004 | 2005 |
|
| 5 | 24 | 4 | August 29, 2006 | March 7, 2005 | 2006 |
|
| 6 | 24 | 4 | May 1, 2007 | August 15, 2005 | 2007 |
|
| 7 | 24 | 4 | December 4, 2007 | January 30, 2006 | 2007 |
|
| 8 | 24 | 4 | September 16, 2008 | August 7, 2006 | 2008 |
|
| Finale | 1 | 1 | May 30, 2006 | — | — |
|
| 9 | 16 | 2 | June 12, 2018 | TBA | June 13, 2018[81] | |
| 10 | 18 | 2 | June 18, 2019 | TBA | June 18, 2019[81] | |
| 11 | 18 | 2 | July 7, 2020 | TBA | July 7, 2020 | |
| 1–8 | 194 | 33 | September 16, 2008 | August 7, 2006 | April 30, 2008 | Re-packaged discs from the previous releases with a bonus disc containing:
|
It had been announced that Megan Mullally would be creating and starring in a new Broadway musical titledKaren: The Musical. This musical would have had Mullally reprising her role of Karen Walker. She stated in an interview that the show may also involve recurring guest starLeslie Jordan in his role as Beverley Leslie, with a story revolving around their rivalry.[82]
According to Mullally, the project was cancelled due to the rights to the Karen character being withdrawn. Mullally stated to have already gained approval from the network, as well as having the Broadway production company Fox Theatricals, director and choreographerCasey Nicholaw and composerJeff Blumenkrantz all lined up to participate in the production, before certain stakeholders in the Karen Walker character withdrew the rights for its use in the production.[83]
There had been talk in 2008 that a spin-off was being developed by NBC titledJack & Karen, featuring Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally reprising their roles. Hayes initially showed interest in the spin-off but was ultimately put off by theFriends spin-off,Joey. Furthermore, Mullally's new work schedule in the form of hertalk show, which was canceled several months later, did not allow her to pursue the spin-off at the time.[84]
On September 26, 2016, the main cast—McCormack, Messing, Hayes, and Mullally, plus Morrison in a cameo role—reunited for a 10-minute web special, urging Americans to vote in the2016 presidential election.[7] In the special – titled#VoteHoney – Karen, an avidDonald Trump supporter, tries to persuade Jack to vote for Trump, while Will and Grace, both avidHillary Clinton supporters, try to persuade him to vote for Clinton. At the end, Will reveals that singerKaty Perry is a supporter of Clinton, which persuades Jack to vote for Clinton. The success of the special resulted in the series' revival in 2017.[citation needed]
The television situation comedy Will and Grace is notable as the first successful network prime-time series to feature gay characters in a gay milieu.
The men, who created the show and wrote many of its episodes, accuse the two companies of failing to shop the show to the highest bidder, colluding instead to keep profits within the NBC family. General Electric owns both companies.
