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Megan Mullally Reveals a Karen Spinoff Was in the Works After Will & Grace Revival

Megan Mullally honored her late Will & Grace co-star Leslie Jordan and discussed her iconic character, Karen, at the premiere of the Party Down revival.

By JD Knapp Feb 23, 2023 5:48 PMTags
Watch: Megan Mullally Reveals a Karen Spinoff Was in the Works

From Will & Grace to Karen & Karen.

Megan Mullally is no stranger to a sitcom set. Whether it was the original 1998 version or the 2017 revival, the actress was at home playing Karen Walker for 11 seasons on NBC. As she revealed, there's a world in which viewers could have kept up with the fan-favorite character even longer.

"There was some talk of me doing a Karen spinoff [after the original]," Mullally told E! News exclusively at the premiere of the Party Down reboot on Feb. 22. "But I wanted to do a show with Martin Short that was different."

In fact, that wasn't the only time Eric McCormack, Debra Messing and Sean Hayes' former co-star nearly landed her own show (However, she did admit she's done playing the character for now).

"Also, they talked to me about doing a Karen spinoff after the last one, too," Mullally added. "But it wasn't really real."

One aspect of Will & Grace that was real was her undeniable chemistry with late co-star, Leslie Jordan. She discussed his viral Internet fame and their last moments together before his sudden death at age 67 in October.

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"He was so happy," Mullally shared. "The Instagram thing made him feel like people were seeing him and getting him—and they were, and they still are. When you're that talented and you don't have the exactly right vehicle that really captures people's attention: That was his vehicle, Instagram."

Chris Haston/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images

The actress will next appear in the Party Down revival alongside fellow returning stars Ken Marino, Jane Lynch, Martin Starr and Ryan Hansen alongside new additions Jennifer Garner, Tyrel Jackson Williams, Zoë Chao and James Marsden. The original series ran for two seasons on Starz from 2009 to 2010.

"It really is the funniest, nicest group of people," Mullally noted. "Honestly, it's just a special group. I hate using that word, but it's true."

Don't wait for the Party Down reboot once it premieres Feb. 24 on Starz, more than 12 years after it first went off the air.

Plus, see more of Megan Mullally's interview tonight on E! News at 11 p.m. EST.

—Reporting by Adam Havener

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