Pretty but also pretty quirky, Debra Messing honed her acting skills on stage before segueing to a small-screen career. Her first screwball sitcom,
Ned and Stacey, lasted only two seasons, but her next similarly titled series,
Will & Grace---where she played the straight woman to her gay best friend---ran for eight seasons, and made her a star and fashion plate, while also earning her an Emmy. Messing made her feature film debut in the 1995 romance
A Walk in the Clouds as Keanu Reeves' war bride, and has since made occasional returns to the big screen. But she's devoted most of her energy to her TV career---which got another lift in 2007 with the Emmy-winning miniseries
The Starter Wife---and to her off-camera life with her screenwriter-actor husband, Daniel Zelman, and their son, Roman.
Debra Messing Fast Facts:
- Won the Rhode Island Junior Miss pageant in 1986.
- Made her professional stage debut playing Cecily in a production of Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest at Seattle's Intiman Theatre.
- First TV appearance was on a 1994 episode of the ABC police drama NYPD Blue.
- Named the Best Dressed Woman of 2003 by TV GUIDE.
- Graduated to big-screen leading roles with the 2005 romantic comedy The Wedding Date; subsequently starred in Nothing Like the Holidays and The Women (both 2008), among others.
- Debra Messing Relationships:
- Brett Messing - Brother
- Brian Messing - Father
- Daniel Zelman - Husband (separated)
- Roman Walker Zelman - Son
- Sandy Messing - Mother
- Debra Messing Awards:
- 2000 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2001 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2002 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2003 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Winner
- 2006 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2004 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2005 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2000 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2001 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2002 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2003 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2007 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie - Nominee
- 2008 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television - Nominee
- 2009 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2007 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries - Nominee
- 2004 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2003 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2003 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2002 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2001 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2000 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series - Winner
- 2000 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- College:
- Brandeis University, Waltham, MA (BA in Theater Arts, 1990); attended Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, London, England; attended London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, London, England; New York University, New York, NY (MFA in Acting, 1993)