Situation comedy Will & Grace’s new iteration serves as a further example of Hollywood’s current trend of using every program available to demean conservatives and push a leftist narrative. Since its return to the small screen after an 11-year hiatus, the show appears intent upon dividing fans with its opaque commitment to political activism in place of bipartisan entertainment.
During episode 1 of season 9, the crew treks to Washington, DC, where Grace’s (Debra Messing) assistant Karen (Megan Mullally) has scored her a redecorating gig in the Oval Office, courtesy of Karen’s friendship with Melania Trump. The mere setting of the White House for the show’s first episode is a crass choice, setting the tone for a politically-inflamed series destined to ostracize and offend rather than garner laughs. As for the redecoration, Trump has only one stylistic request:
“He wants it to look like he's there from time to time.”
Furthermore, in a scene where Messing’s character is choosing her color pallette for the President’s office, she says, “Karen, hand me that curtain swatch. I want to make sure it works with his coloring.” Grace then opens a package of Cheetos and affirms, “Yeah, that’s the one.”
The political assault of the episode peaks in shamefulness with a cruel ridicule of beloved Republican President Ronald Reagan’s battle with Alzheimer’s: reminiscing about her earlier time in Washington, Karen remarks nostalgically, “The first time I was in this office, Nancy and I were chasing Ronnie around that desk, trying to get some protein into the ol' Gipper. We used to put a scoop of tuna fish in an ice cream cone and tell him it was mint chip.”
Things take a turn for the even worse in the NBC sitcom's latest installment. In addition to a joke lampooning Harvard and NYU graduate Jared Kushner — husband of Ivanka Trump — for “[getting] rich for doing nothing,” Karen responds to a friend crying with a pathetic exclamation:
"Oh, for God's sake, don't cry. You look like Jeff Sessions watching a black man vote.”
The comment is presumably a reference to Sessions’s racially-neutral support for voter ID laws, which makes it an absurd interpretation of the Attorney General's position on the side of protecting democracy. Besides, it’s despicable to accuse a man of racism without reason, particularly one who desegregated schools in Alabama.
As disappointing as the show’s political activism is, it can’t be said to be very surprising. In September of 2016, the Will & Grace cast reunited for a video in support of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Moreover, leading up to the show’s new season, lead actor Eric McCormack made a promise:
“We’re going to be as progressive and offensive as we can be. If we don’t offend somebody with every show, we’re probably getting a little safe.”
Only in the tiny, left-wing Tinseltown bubble could one think that first sentence would be well-received by a general audience. Sadly, McCormick and the rest seemingly fail to realize that conservatives — akin to unicorns in Hollywood elitist circles — actually comprise half of their potential audience. And in this case, it's the half that will likely be changing the channel.
For an off-color look at the descending and disgraceful political activist state of Hollywood (and unfunny comedy), watch the 2016 election-time video below: