Debra Messing Makes Her TV Return

Debra Messing makes her return to TV later this month just a year after the final wrap of Will & Grace. She returns in the USA Network miniseries, The Starter Wife, based on the Gigi Levangie Grazer novel. In the film, Messing stars as Molly Kagan, a 40-year-old housewife whose Hollywood-executive husband ends their marriage via cell phone just weeks before their 10-year anniversary and the subsequent expiration date of their pre-nup. She recently sat down with Redbook Magazine of her life following the end of her iconic series, life as a mom, and where she's headed now.

Here are some highlights:

On putting the character of Grace away:
I don't think she'll ever go away. The last season was traumatic because we knew it was ending, so the anticipation of saying good-bye was drawn out and both painful and exhausting. It was almost a relief when it was over. I went to Cape Cod with my family and relaxed. And I did not want to work for six months.

On what she brought from Will & Grace to the mini-series:
I was married to Will & Grace for eight years. So like Molly, I was starting a new chapter. There was a level of confusion about identity, and I asked myself similar questions: Who have I been? Who do I want to be? What life do I want to live?

On filing in Australia for four months away from her husband:
We've been together for 16 years, and the longest I've been away from Daniel prior to this was three weeks. And not only apart, but we were on other sides of the world -- like, "What time is it there?" "The next day!" Thank God for iChat. Plus, I was on the set 16 to 18 hours every day. It was the most grueling work experience ever. Out of the four months of shooting days, I had one day off.

On how being a mom changed has changed her life:
I feel like a different person. To see the world through a child's perspective, where everything is wondrous, is the miracle of children. You get to bear witness to their discovery of the world. And it's an hourly thing. Three is an amazing age, and then add boy to it! The energy is out of control. And just when you think it might dissipate, he just pumps up the volume a little bit more.

On the biggest surprise for you about being a parent:
I remember the first few months after I gave birth, I was enraged that my closest friends and family did not tell me how hard it was. I said, "Obviously it's a miracle and I love my child, but why didn't you tell me how exhausted I was going to be? And how difficult the hormonal changes are?" And they all said, "If we told you the truth, you wouldn't want to do it."

Pick up the June issue of Redbook for the rest of the interview.