Dramatic, flamboyant and always outrageous, the character of Jack McFarland is a favourite among ‘Will And Grace’ viewers, but not everyone was taken with the character during the show’s original run.
Some critics noted Jack played up to stereotypes about gay people that a show like ‘Will And Grace’ should have been trying to break down.
With a new series of the sitcom now airing on Channel 5 here in the UK, actor Sean Hayes, who plays Jack, has now had his say on the matter, suggesting people’s problems with Jack stem from their own issues.
He told HuffPost UK: “I think that’s probably more about that person, than the character I’m playing.
“It’s probably [because of] insecurities and other troubles somebody’s going through that they don’t enjoy the character in that way that is intended.
“But, you know… I play Jack, and I am gay. So, the part of me that is Jack, if that’s a stereotype, or you want to call it a stereotype, fine. But… that’s who I am.”
He continued: “I actually know lots and lots and lots of gay people, and so there are many facets of different gay people just as there are many facets of different straight people.
“So, you can’t say, I don’t know, ‘Tom Hanks is a stereotypical straight man’. He plays a lot of different roles, we all do.”
After a break of more than a decade, Sean returned to the role of Jack McFarland in ‘Will And Grace’ for a new series in 2017, alongside co-stars Debra Messing, Eric McCormack and Megan Mullally.
The new series of ‘Will And Grace’ is currently on Friday nights at 10pm on Channel 5.