Wicked Meets Will & Grace! Megan Hilty and Debra Messing Sign On for NBC’s Smash

Broadway darling Megan Hilty has landed a leading role in Steven Spielberg’s upcoming NBC pilot Smash, a drama about the mounting of a Broadway musical, while former Will & Grace star Debra Messing is reportedly finalizing a deal to play a lyricist on the show, according to Deadline.com.

Hilty is the latest starry stage name added to the lineup of this hour-long show, which follows a cross section of characters who come together to put a Marilyn Monroe musical on Broadway. As previously reported, the pilot of Smash will be written by Theresa Rebeck (Mauritius), and feature music by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray). Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening, American Idiot), will direct.

Messing won an Emmy Award for her role on NBC series Will & Grace, opposite Eric McCormack and stage faves Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally, and was nominated for a Golden Globe for mini-series The Starter Wife. Hilty made her Broadway debut playing popular girl Glinda in Wicked, and went on to star in 9 to 5 as Doralee Rhodes. Her film credits include The Bitter Feast the animated film Dorothy of Oz, currently in production.

Along with Spielberg, Rebeck, Shaiman and Wittman, producers of Smash will include Craig Zadan and Neil Meron (Chicago, Hairspray) and Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey for DreamWorks TV.