Sean Hayes returns to television this
fall, NBC in fact, in a new sitcom titled Sean Saves the World.
Hayes plays a divorced gay dad who has
his hands full juggling work and a teenage daughter. Linda Lavin
(Barney Miller, Alice) plays his overbearing mother.
“Thanks, everyone for the well-wishes
on the pick up of my new show for NBC – 'Sean Saves The World,'”
Hayes messaged to his nearly 169,000 Twitter followers. “We are
thrilled and can't wait. =)”
Talk of the show first emerged in 2011,
when NBC programming chairman Robert Greenblatt discussed the project
at the Television Critics Association (TCA).
Hayes is best known for playing Jack
McFarland for 8 seasons on NBC's groundbreaking sitcom Will &
Grace. His portrayal of Jack, Will Truman's campy gay best
friend, won him an Emmy Award, four SAG Awards and one American
Comedy Award.
He was nominated for a Tony Award for
his performance in the 2010 Broadway musical Promises, Promises.
Hayes has also worked behind the
camera, sharing producing duties on TV Land's Hot in Cleveland and
NBC's Grimm.
In
a 2010 interview with gay glossy The
Advocate, Hayes announced he's gay but insisted he was
“never in.”
“I am who I am. I was never in, as
they say. Never,” he said, explaining that he had never faked a
straight relationship.