Legendary TV director Jimmy Burrows brought the cast of Will & Grace together one last time.
“Sadly, we all saw each other a few days ago because of Jimmy Burrows’ funeral,” Eric McCormack, who famously played Will Truman on the hit TV series for the entirety of its 11-season run, exclusively told Us Weekly on Saturday, June 28, while walking the Project Angel Food red carpet in Hollywood.
“I hadn’t seen Debra [Messing] in years, and it is always great to see her,” McCormack, 63, continued. “I saw Sean Hayes. Not so great for the reason, but Jimmy always brought us together on that stage every week, and he brought us together again.”
Burrows died in his sleep on June 19 after a brief illness. He was 85.
“Jimmy was the greatest comedic television director in the history of the medium,” Burrows’ longtime agent Rick Rosen said in a statement to Deadline shortly after the Cheers creator’s death. “He directed the most iconic, defining shows of generations. Always a gentleman, it was an absolute honor to represent him.”
During his career, Burrows won 11 Emmys and worked on successful comedies, including Taxi, Friends, Frasier, Two and a Half Men, Will & Grace and The Big Bang Theory.
“James Burrows was a legend. An icon. A singular talent and revolutionary in television,” Messing, 57, who portrayed the titular Grace Adler on the beloved sitcom, wrote via Instagram on June 19 in honor of the TV director. “To me he was Jimmy. To my son, he was Papa Jimmy.”
She continued, “I can’t express the pain of his loss, and I know that is true for everyone who was lucky enough to be loved by him. Jimmy changed my life 28 years ago and has been in my life ever since. He had a dry sense of humor but exploded in laughter when he orchestrated comic moments that landed. I wanted his laughs most of all.”
When asked to recall a favorite memory of Burrows, McCormack told Us there are simply too many to count.
“Oh, too many to quote and in print it wouldn’t look so good because you’d have to do the Jimmy Burrows voice,” McCormack told Us on Saturday. “But my favorite was when I asked him if he thought maybe we’d get a second season. He looked at me and said, ‘Jesus Christ, McCormack. Buy a house.’”
The actor added, “He did [believe in us]. He knew.”
As for what his character, Will, would be doing today, McCormack said he’d be volunteering for worthwhile causes like Project Angel Food, a nonprofit organization that delivers medically-tailored meals to those fighting serious and life-threatening illnesses.
“He’d probably be volunteering here, honestly,” McCormack imagined. “I think he’s still a New York guy. He’d still be there, raising his son.”
He continued, “This is an organization that we all kind of hoped wouldn’t be necessary after a few years. But then they realized there was so much more good they could do beyond its initial mandate of feeding people with HIV/AIDs. Now, they’re feeding so many people — 3,000 a day — with so many different medical conditions, tailoring meals to their individual needs. It’s been an amazing growth.”
