Early career As a teenager, Hayes was an extra in the film
Lucas (1986), which was filmed at
his high school. He made his professional debut in the
independent film ''
Billy's Hollywood Screen Kiss'' (1998), which brought him wide attention.
Will and Grace The same year, he was cast as
Jack McFarland, a flamboyantly gay and frequently unemployed actor, in the
NBC comedy series
Will & Grace. The show became a long-running hit and Hayes' performance earned him seven consecutive
Emmy Award nominations as
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. He won the award for his first nomination. He was also nominated for six
Golden Globe Awards for his performances.
Film Hayes also made film appearances as the voice of the villainous white Persian cat Mr. Tinkles in
Cats & Dogs (2001), as
Jerry Lewis in
Martin and Lewis (2002), Wayne in
Pieces of April (2003) and
Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! (2004). He was also the voice of Brain in the 2008 film
Igor, and has guest-starred in television shows such as
Scrubs and
30 Rock. In 2005, he was executive producer for
Bravo's
Situation: Comedy, a reality television series about sitcoms. He also executive produced
The Sperm Donor and ''Stephen's Life
, the two winning scripts that were chosen by NBC. He guest-starred in 2006 in the Adult Swim cameo-filled show Tom Goes to the Mayor (S2E15, "Bass Fest"). Hayes appeared as Thomas in the film The Bucket List'' (2007). On July 5, 2008, he made his New York stage debut as Mr. Applegate / Devil in
New York City Center's
Encores! production of
Damn Yankees. He also appeared as Mr. Hank Humberfloob and provided the voice of "The Fish" in
The Cat in the Hat. In 2017, Hayes played the role of Steven, the
devil emoji in
The Emoji Movie.
Broadway He made his Broadway debut in the April 2010 Broadway revival of the musical
Promises, Promises. He received a nomination for the
Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance, and was nominated for a
Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. Hayes was host of the
64th Annual Tony Awards on June 13, 2010, on CBS. Hayes starred in the Broadway production
An Act of God, June 6 to September 4, 2016, after engagements in Los Angeles and San Francisco. In 2022, Hayes portrayed pianist
Oscar Levant in the play by
Doug Wright entitled
Good Night, Oscar which premiered at the
Goodman Theatre in Chicago. He reprised the role on
Broadway at the
Belasco Theatre, beginning in April 2023. He received rave reviews for his performance earning a
Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play. He also received the
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play. In February 2025, it was announced that Hayes would make his debut on the
West End reprising this role in a production at the
Barbican Theatre in the summer of 2025. Hayes currently starts in the one-man play
The Unknown,
Off-Broadway at
Studio Seaview, having begun previews on January 31, 2026, with the run slated to end on April 12, 2026.
Other television work On November 15, 2010, he appeared in a satirical PSA for the repeal of
Don't Ask, Don't Tell on
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He was the host of
An All Star Tribute to James Burrows.
Producing and production company Aware that his role in
Will & Grace "wouldn't go on forever," Hayes was co-executive producer of the
TV Land original comedy series
Hot in Cleveland, which premiered in June 2010 and ran for six seasons. He was also a co-executive producer of the
NBC series
Grimm, as well as creator and executive producer on another NBC series,
Hollywood Game Night. Other television series produced by the company include
The Soul Man and
Sean Saves the World. They lip-synced to songs such as "
Trouble" and "
Burnitup!"''
Podcasting In July 2020, Hayes, along with
Will Arnett and
Jason Bateman, created a comedy and talk podcast called
SmartLess. He also hosts another podcast with Priyanka Wali called
HypochondriActor. Hayes starred in and was one of the executive producers for the Netflix series
Q-Force, released September 2, 2021. ==Personal life==