Two years after the end of somewhat groundbreaking NBC comedy Will and Grace, the two obnoxious sidekick characters, Karen Walker and Jack McFarland, may get their own spin off show, according to the National Enquirer. Actor Sean Hayes was said to be interested in a spinoff back in 2006, but nasal-voiced Megan Mullally was focusing on her own talk show at the time. When Megan’s talkshow got canceled early last year, the show became a possibility for her again. The two pitched “Karen and Jack” to NBC and a pilot is in the works. It is thought that it could come out in the fall of 2009.

A new show is in the planning stages that would reunite the quirky duo, the Enquirer has learned.

Sean, 38, who played flamingly gay Jack Mcfarland, and Megan, who was the wacky-but-witty alcoholic Karen Walker on the the hit NBC series until it went off the air two years ago, met Sept. 20 at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles to discuss their new project. The show would be called “Karen & Jack”…

They went to NBC to pitch the idea and a pilot is currently being written, says the insider…

If everything works out, the series could be in NBC’s fall lineup next year.

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, October 13, 2008]

Jack and Karen were the best characters in that show and it would be a great idea to set them up with their own show. The Enquirer points out that it’s a risk, though. Look at that Friends spin-off, Joey. That was pretty much DOA.

They’re outstanding actors who bring a lot of personality and heart to their work. Will and Grace was a successful sitcom and ran for eight seasons. Both won awards for their performances on the show, with Mullally earning two Emmys and two SAG Awards and Hayes winning one Emmy and seven consecutive nominations for best supporting actor. A quick glance at IMDB shows that Mullally has done mostly telvision work since the series wrapped, along with voicing a character in Bee Movie – the bee who gave tours of the honey factory. (It’s hard to miss her voice.) Hayes was featured as Jack Nicholson’s character’s assistant in The Bucket List and has also done television work in the last two years. It seems like they’re open to reprising their Will and Grace characters and they certainly have plenty of fans who would love to see them together again on the small screen.

Northern Exposure semi-cutie Rob Morrow went on Megan Mullally’s now-canned talk show wearing a questionable ensemble that included loose shiny track pants. He was fiddling with something in one of his pockets and it all looked rather suspect to Megan. She had to instruct her camera people to focus on the top half of him, as it looked like he was about to pop out of his pants. She told the details to Conan O’Brien when he asked her about the worst guest on her show. She didn’t name names, but it was pretty obvious she was talking about Morrow:

Megan Mullaly will never forget her worst-ever talk show guest. She recently spoke about him to late night host Conan O’Brien, without naming the culprit.

But The Enquirer has learned she was blasting former “Northern Exposure” star Rob Morrow…

“So, he gets there and he’s wearing, like, the craziest outfit I’ve ever seen, which included a pair of red sweatpants. Shiny, like, sweatpants with pockets,” Megan told Conan.

“He sits on the couch and puts his hand in his pocket and starts – he starts jiggling with his (privates). Like while I’m talking to him.

While I’m interviewing him, he’s jiggling!”…

“The camera guys were on high alert and the entire crew was just waiting for a slip-up, or worse – a slip-out!”

[From The National Enquirer print edition, February 19, 2007]

I had a junior math high teacher that used to jingle the change in his pocket and distract me from the fascinating equations I was supposed to be learning. It was either a nervous affectation or a sexually deviant maneuver in front of underaged kids or a mixture of both, I never really figured it out. It’s possible that Morrow was just messing with his keys because he’s nervous being in front of the camera again considering how long it’s been since we’ve seen him in anything. Oh wait – he’s in that show Numb3rs on CBS. My mom watched it a few times in its first season.

Mullally is said to have appealed to her former Will and Grace co-stars to appear on her show in a reunion episode for her birthday last November, but two of them begged off. Sean Hayes was open to it and came on the show that month. Debra Messing appeared in September, but would not appear again and Eric McCormack would have nothing to do with it. People were supposedly busy, but it looked like Mullaly was getting dissed due to low ratings. The show was cancelled in early January.