Debra Messing Teases Next Season of 'Will & Grace'

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) just released an episode of their podcast, “The HFPA in Conversation” featuring Debra Messing. The redheaded comedian sat down to tease what fans can expect from the highly anticipated next season of "Will & Grace," the impact of the show both on herself and on the world, and how it feels turning 50 in Hollywood.

Here are some highlights from the discussion:

· What fans can expect from the upcoming new season of Will & Grace: “You can expect big changes for all four characters… Grace is getting a love interest, which I’m looking very forward to… Karen is getting divorced, Will is changing jobs, and Jack is getting married… big sweeping changes so that means there’s going to be all kinds of new things to play with and joke about, and also just extraordinary guest stars. Alec Baldwin is coming back… Chelsea Handler is coming and I think she’s the perfect kind of actor to come and play in our playground.”

· Will & Grace’s cultural impact: “It became apparent that the show was politically and socially relevant in a way that surprised all of us and it was a source of enormous pride for me. We tried to use our platform on that show to pass gay marriage when it was on, but it didn’t work… so years later when Vice President Biden said that he supported gay marriage and he felt that Will & Grace did more for the cause than anything else in society… other than the birth of my child that was the proudest moment of my life.”

· Her next film, "Searching," is unlike anything she’s done before: The film, which also stars John Cho, is a thriller about a missing teen told completely through technology devices we use every day to communicate. “I don’t want to give anything away… but I’m not known for roles such as this… I only shot for a week. The entire film was done in 13 days which is really astonishing. I didn’t realize a feature film could be made in 13 days.”

· On turning 50 this month: “I’m proud of the person that I’ve become and the things that I’ve committed my time and energy to. I’m enjoying being at a place in my life where I can say ‘no’ to things and not feel guilty… where I can let go of things that are not serving me or my life well. When I was younger I was so consumed with worry about what other people thought or felt and I think it caused confusion to me… I feel like it’s an exciting time.”