With NBC’s musical showpiece ‘SMASH’ delegated a less-than-lovable Saturday night time-slot [from April 6th], star Debra Messing spent no time locking in a back-up plan in case the show is not renewed for a (unlikely) third season.  Viewers has been dropping heavily since the shows second season premiere (recently earning a measly 0.8 rating) resulting in the change of time-slot.

Messing has been attached to a project for CBS,  the lead in a yet-to-be-titled comedy from Sex and the City alums Julie Rottenberg and Elisa Zuritsky.  The untitled comedy will see Messing play “Shira, a happily married but harried mother struggling to balance family, life and work. Between her job as a ghost writer for a demanding celebrity chef and having three children all ranging in age from preschool to 7, she feels like the world’s worst mother because of her tendency to cut corners.”

Messing is the first and only star to be cast.

After two seasons on SMASH as playwright Julia Houston, this will be Messing’s first series comedy role since the end of the popular Will & Grace.

UPDATE: March 2014 – Debra Messing lands lead in new cop drama