Debra Messing has suffered an awkward gaffe on social media after telling fans to “pray for Australia” in response to torrential flooding in Melbourne, Florida.
The Will & Grace star captured the internet’s attention earlier today when she shared a weather map on her Instagram Stories detailing the historic floods that hit the city of Melbourne in Florida this week – seemingly mistaking it for the Australian city of the same name.
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“Pray for #Australia,” the actress captioned the image of the weather map, alongside a prayer hand emoji.
The post was quickly reshared across other social media platforms as users playfully ribbed Messing for the geographic blunder.
“Oh no she didn’t…,” one X user wrote, while another said they “love how stupid she is”.
“This is… a lot,” another follower wrote on BlueSky, with a fourth user sarcastically quipping, “Thoughts and prayers Australia, thoughts and prayers”.
Messing has yet to respond to the snafu, and the original post still appears on her Instagram page at the time of writing.
It comes as torrential rains continue to sweep across Florida since the start of the week, with the historic downpours submerging streets and triggering flash flood emergencies across large swathes of the state, including Melbourne.
It’s not the first time Messing has caused a stir with her social media posts.
In 2020, she was forced to apologise after suggesting in an X post that she hoped US President Donald Trump would be sexually assaulted in prison, saying he would be “the most popular boyfriend to … all inmates”.
“It is not my proudest moment,” Messing later wrote of the X post. “I apologise for the offensive way I did it.”
Last year, Messing starred alongside Robert DeNiro in the mob drama film The Alto Knights, though she has largely taken a step back from prominent Hollywood roles in recent years.
The actress is best known for her lead role on Will & Grace, the hit sitcom that earned her five Emmy Award nominations during its 11-season run from 1998 to 2006.
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