Megan Mullally is funny. The “Will & Grace” star can also sing and dance. While she’s not picking up the Oscar hosting gig after the Kevin Hart fiasco, Mullally will take center stage on Sunday, Jan. 27 when she makes her debut as the host of the 25th annual SAG Awards.
Variety caught up with Mullally shortly after the hosting announcement was made to talk SAG Awards prep, why she won’t be riffing on politics during the show and the one person she’s hoping to meet on the big day.
How did the hosting job come about?
Well I first heard them say, “Will you be our ho…?” and I was like, ‘Yeah, I can be your ho!” But then it turns out they actually said “host.” And I was like, “Oh okay, well I could do that, too.”
How do you prepare?
I don’t know! Find some writers and throw a bunch of ideas around. I had a couple of ideas that are funny that require some shooting some stuff outside of the actual live broadcast, so we’ll see. I don’t think I have an inordinate amount of screen time. I’m not on stage for twenty minutes telling a series of amazing political jokes. That’s s not going to happen. It’s not going to be political. it’s going to be about actors and celebrating talent.
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No politics?
I don’t think it’s that kind of night. I’m political, but my stock-in-trade is not politics.
Will you be doing some song and dance?
Well maybe! Maybe there’ll be a little something.
You’ve been in the business for about 40 years. Was hosting the SAG Awards ever part of the plan?
Never! But I do think it’s really cool that they asked me to host because [hosts are] not always women. It’s not always women my age. I don’t have 19 million followers on social media. I have so many great memories of the SAG Awards. It’s just a fun one to go to, and you see all your friends and sometimes there’s like Olivia Colman that you can prostrate yourself in front of. I think everyone wants to meet her. She’s going to be besieged.
Does this mean you’re going host the Oscars one day?
Probably. [Laughs] I think it’s in the bag.
Have you been deleting old tweets?
[Laughs] A lot of people did say that though, on social media, when they announced I was hosting. They were like, “She should host the Oscars, too.” I was like, “I don’t think it works that way.”
And now it looks like the Oscars are going to go hostless.
That’s ridiculous. That’s so dumb. Why would they do that?
So who’s your favorite awards show host of all time?
Gosh, there have been a lot of good ones. I love Tina [Fey] and Amy [Poehler]. I love Conan [O’Brien]. I think Jimmy Kimmel has kind of been a slam dunk.”
The SAG Awards air live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on Sunday. Jan. 27 at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET on TBS and TNT.