NBC Officially Revives ‘Will & Grace’ for 10-Episode Run
UPDATE: NBC has ordered additional episodes of its Will & Grace revival. Originally a 10-episode limited run, the show returns next season for 12 episodes, Deadline reports. The season is expected to pick up the characters’ storylines a decade after the 2006 finale.
NBC announced Wednesday that the network is reviving its groundbreaking Aughts sitcom Will & Grace for a 10-episode run during the 2017-18 season.
All four of the series’ main stars – Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally – will reprise their Emmy-winning roles. TV director James Burrows, who helmed each of the original series’ 194 episodes, also agreed to work on the revival. The original sitcom ran for eight seasons between 1998 and 2006.
“We’re thrilled that one of the smartest, funniest, and most defining comedies in NBC history is coming back,” NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt said in a statement. “This groundbreaking series for everything from gay rights to social and political commentary — all disguised as a high-speed train of witty pop culture — is coming back where it belongs.”
Will & Grace reunion rumors have circulated since September, when the former cast members got together in character to film a 10-minute scene that focused on the 2016 presidential election.
After that, talk of larger-scale reunion continues to swirl, with actress Leslie Jordan accidentally slipping in late December that the sitcom “is back. [NBC] has ordered 10 [episodes]. It’ll be for next season, so they’ll go in in July.”
Messing was quick to downplay Jordan’s confirmation at the time – “Nothing beyond talks,” the actress tweeted January 2nd – but didn’t hold back her enthusiasm about returning to the Grace role after the revival news was announced at the Television Critics Association panel on Wednesday.
SO HAPPY TO ANNOUNCE THIS!!!! ❤❤❤❤❤??????????? https://t.co/Hl42PsZxl8
— Debra Messing (@DebraMessing) January 18, 2017