'Will & Grace' star joins Alicia Silverstone in comedy pilot

Emmy winner Megan Mullally is headed back to TV comedy, joining Alicia Silverstone in ABC's pilot "Bad Mother's Handbook."

The former "Will & Grace" star will play Silverstone's overbearing mom in the pilot, the showbiz trade papers say. Also at ABC, Annie Potts ("Designing Women," "Men in Trees") and Amanda Detmer ("What About Brian") have signed on to Kristin Newman's untitled comedy, and a host of actors have joined the drama presentation "Finnegan."

"Bad Mother's Handbook" centers on Silverstone's character, a woman in her early 30s who has no life of her own because she's too busy looking after her teenage daughter (Alia Shawkat) and mother. The show would be Mullally's first series since "Will & Grace" left the air two years ago; she hosted a short-lived talk show for NBC in 2006-07 and is currently wrapping up a Broadway run in "Young Frankenstein."

ABC's upfront takes place Tuesday, but "Bad Mother's Handbook" and other not-yet-filmed pilots won't be a big part of the presentation. The network is adding only a couple of shows to its fall lineup, with most of the pilots -- which got a late start following the writers' strike -- likely targeted for midseason and beyond.

The Kristin Newman comedy stars Alyssa Milano ("Charmed") as a woman trying to loosen the grip of her dysfunctional family, friends and boss. Potts and Detmer will play two of those people.

"Finnegan" centers on a female detective who leads an organized crime and vice unit in Los Angeles. The lead role has yet to be cast, but the team around her is assembled. Domenick Lombardozzi ("The Wire"), Tasha Smith ("Why Did I Get Married?"), Jacob Vargas ("Moonlight") and Malachi Weir ("The Naked Brothers Band") will play members of the unit, and Tzi Ma ("24," "Rush Hour") will play Finnegan's boss.