Part of what made Will & Grace work so well for so long was the pitch-perfect comedy between Megan Mullally and some of the show's smaller characters.
And no pairing played off each other quite so perfectly as Mullally's Karen Walker and her arch-nemesis Beverley Leslie, played by Leslie Jordan. The two had so much fun insulting each other it seemed impossible they could be such enemies.
In real life of course, the former costars are long-standing friends, but when they reunited this past weekend at a book festival, they weren't about to pass up an opportunity to throw shade at each other.
So they filmed an Instagram video trading some of their most famous Will & Grace barbs.
The reunion happened in Washington D.C. at the National Book Festival, where Mullally hosted a discussion with Jordan in promotion of his new memoir, How Y’all Doing?: Misadventures and Mischief from a Life Well-Lived.
Backstage, they reunited not only as Megan and Leslie, but Karen, the catty, uber-rich alcoholic socialite who worked for the titular Grace because she had nothing better to do, and Beverley, an equally rich closeted gay man who spent an awfully lot of time with his "business associate, Benji," wink-wink.
Once in character, they traded a pair of the classic Will & Grace insults that Karen and Beverley would use to greet each other whenever they came across one another.
Jordan began the familiar ritual by saying:
"Well, well, well Karen Walker. I thought I smelled gin and regret."
To which Mullally as Karen replied:
"Why Beverley Leslie! You're looking more and more like a woman every time I see you."
As integral as their adversarial relationship was to Will & Grace, it very nearly wasn't to be--Jordan revealed in his talk with Mullally his part was originally written for Joan Collins, of all people.
On Instagram, people absolutely loved Mullally and Jordan's reunion.
@stacey.with.an.e.y/Instagram
@alexfineillos/Instagram
@ellenquertermous/Instagram
@sam.steiber/Instagram
@geovalentine/Instagram
@ddlovato/Instagram
@leland/Instagram
@onefunnylisamarie/Instagram
@lisarinna/Instagram
@robynschallcomic/Instagram
And to think we came so close to never having a Karen and Beverley. Thank goodness Joan Collins didn't make the cut!
@AhmedBaba_/X
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@ParapenteJohn/X
@andrewonseeair/Bluesky
@emer.net; @spryoldlorax/Bluesky
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@rowast.com/Bluesky
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