WEBVTT - 107: Grant: For the People w/ Kerry Washington 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:03.279 Unpacking the toolboxes of production of Schondoland Audio in partnership 0:00:03.279 --> 0:00:39.600 with iHeartRadio. Katie Hi Ja Hi Katie Hioka, Curly cook 0:00:39.760 --> 0:00:43.760 curly curly. My second grade teacher used to always missus kaylish. 0:00:44.520 --> 0:00:48.919 She was so mean, but she would always sing cooka Cokatie, 0:00:49.120 --> 0:00:53.239 My beautiful Katie. There's some fucking song, remember I know? 0:00:53.440 --> 0:00:55.480 To you? She would sing it to you to me 0:00:55.520 --> 0:00:58.240 when I entered the classroom game is there any childhood 0:00:58.320 --> 0:01:04.520 song where Guillermo is a name? Hell no, remember romper Room. 0:01:04.520 --> 0:01:06.280 I mean you're suit You're much younger than I am. 0:01:06.280 --> 0:01:08.280 But there was no show called Romper Room. And the 0:01:08.680 --> 0:01:12.000 host in the beginning would look into this magical mirror 0:01:12.000 --> 0:01:14.800 and be like, I see you Tommy and Katie and 0:01:14.959 --> 0:01:22.120 John and Barbara and Ted, and like, how about in 0:01:22.160 --> 0:01:25.120 New York when you go into the trinket stores and 0:01:25.160 --> 0:01:28.040 it's like you can get a little license played or 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:31.840 a little pencil with like Katie's always on there. Yeah, 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:35.440 and it's always in a variation of spellings. Yeah, I 0:01:35.520 --> 0:01:37.800 might get Katie, which is how I spell it. There 0:01:37.880 --> 0:01:40.920 might be kat why whatever, But you are just straight 0:01:41.000 --> 0:01:42.880 up fun. No. They would be like, well, get a, 0:01:42.920 --> 0:01:46.640 William William is garm I'm like, is William gear Well? 0:01:46.680 --> 0:01:50.640 William is like the English version of Guillermo. So my friends, 0:01:50.720 --> 0:01:54.600 you know, teachers and um my, my friends I couldn't 0:01:54.600 --> 0:01:57.200 pronounce Giarmo would call me Willie like Willie was my 0:01:57.320 --> 0:02:01.920 name in school, like for you wi l e Willie. 0:02:02.440 --> 0:02:08.000 Oh God, not Willie call you that from now? Please? 0:02:08.680 --> 0:02:10.639 I like it. I actually like it. I'm gonna get 0:02:10.639 --> 0:02:12.760 Willie tatted on me. I don't know if you can 0:02:12.840 --> 0:02:18.680 tell Willie Willie Willie William that. Um, I have a 0:02:18.680 --> 0:02:21.400 lot of extra kick and pep in my step today, 0:02:21.680 --> 0:02:26.679 do you why? Well, because we have the most exciting 0:02:26.840 --> 0:02:32.760 guest for our listeners today. I mean we're obsessed with her. 0:02:32.880 --> 0:02:35.280 We're obsessed with her and obsessed with us. Yeah, I 0:02:35.280 --> 0:02:41.040 mean clearly. I mean, and there is no scandal without 0:02:41.080 --> 0:02:46.799 this person about this person's performance. Yea. And honestly, she 0:02:47.040 --> 0:02:52.600 changed my life in like every way, because well, that's 0:02:52.639 --> 0:02:54.680 just because that's the person she is. I don't think 0:02:54.720 --> 0:02:57.880 anyone who has been lucky enough to spend time with 0:02:57.919 --> 0:03:01.200 the one and only Number one of Scandal could say 0:03:01.240 --> 0:03:04.320 that she hadn't changed their life, because that's just the 0:03:04.400 --> 0:03:09.440 magnitude of human that she is. Yes, she's fucking hilarious. Ye, 0:03:09.600 --> 0:03:13.239 that's the other thing, Like, Okay, she's an activist, she's 0:03:13.280 --> 0:03:16.280 the best actress ever. She's a director, she's a producer. 0:03:16.440 --> 0:03:19.760 She's been on Broadway, she's been in movies. She's led 0:03:19.880 --> 0:03:25.240 the Democratic National Convention. She's ridiculously the accolades and the 0:03:25.600 --> 0:03:28.360 respect and all of that, but girl is fucking hill. 0:03:28.960 --> 0:03:31.800 That's one of my favorite things about Carrie is remember 0:03:31.919 --> 0:03:34.760 laughing with her on set, Like laughing with her was 0:03:34.920 --> 0:03:37.440 so much fun, so so much fun. And look, I 0:03:37.440 --> 0:03:41.520 wear my shirt that says Queen, because Carrie is the queen. 0:03:42.040 --> 0:03:45.440 She's our queen, and she's our queen of Scandal. And 0:03:45.560 --> 0:03:52.800 she also was the best number one. Yes, I honestly 0:03:52.880 --> 0:03:57.000 think this business has ever seen. She's spoiled. Ye spoiled 0:03:57.040 --> 0:04:00.000 all of other TV shows that I was a regular 0:04:00.080 --> 0:04:03.200 la on, which was like two others, But she spoiled 0:04:03.200 --> 0:04:06.720 that for because the amount of you know, class and 0:04:07.560 --> 0:04:12.080 h just a positiveness and respect that I expected from 0:04:12.080 --> 0:04:17.520 my number one after Scandal was like anything that I 0:04:17.560 --> 0:04:21.160 ever got. Yeah. Yeah, it was like you're no Kerry Washington. No, 0:04:21.360 --> 0:04:24.840 I mean she was and also how I behaved on set, 0:04:24.920 --> 0:04:27.880 Like I truly think there was like speeches made. You know, 0:04:27.920 --> 0:04:29.960 obviously you guys have heard on the podcast that well, 0:04:30.839 --> 0:04:33.560 we knew that the end was coming our last season, 0:04:33.600 --> 0:04:36.600 so there were so many goodbyes. But they kept saying 0:04:36.600 --> 0:04:38.840 over and over again that everyone who was lucky enough 0:04:38.880 --> 0:04:41.000 to be on this set could go off into their 0:04:41.000 --> 0:04:44.280 other sets, of their other jobs, knowing that this type 0:04:44.279 --> 0:04:47.320 of family feel and behavior was even possible, and that 0:04:47.400 --> 0:04:49.839 you could strive for that and like exist, you should 0:04:49.960 --> 0:04:53.800 try to have your cast and crew feel like this. 0:04:54.080 --> 0:04:57.520 But my god, this woman, I mean, she didn't. Every 0:04:57.560 --> 0:05:00.320 time she got nominated for an award, which was all lot, 0:05:01.040 --> 0:05:04.159 she would gather the entire crew do you remember this shit? 0:05:05.360 --> 0:05:09.640 Rather gather the entire crew and cast and just like 0:05:09.800 --> 0:05:14.120 make the most beautiful speech about that. It was about 0:05:14.279 --> 0:05:15.560 she did at all the time, but how it was 0:05:16.200 --> 0:05:20.080 everyone like that she was nothing without the rest of us, 0:05:20.160 --> 0:05:22.839 like the and the crew and the grip. She knew 0:05:22.880 --> 0:05:27.000 everyone's names, everyone significant others names, who was expecting children, 0:05:27.000 --> 0:05:30.760 who was purchasing homes, who needed help? Like it was yeah, 0:05:30.800 --> 0:05:32.919 and she would also, Katie, do you remember she would 0:05:33.279 --> 0:05:36.200 when we had background on set. Whenever we had background, 0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:39.159 she would take a moment, either before we started shooting 0:05:39.240 --> 0:05:41.320 or after, to say, Hey, I just want to take 0:05:41.320 --> 0:05:44.400 a minute to say thank you to you guys. Without you, guys, 0:05:44.440 --> 0:05:48.000 we cannot have you know, made scandal, So thank you 0:05:48.080 --> 0:05:51.760 background actors, you oh the world. She always did that, 0:05:52.120 --> 0:05:53.680 and that's the first time I ever saw that on 0:05:53.720 --> 0:05:56.520 set on I've never seen that either. Remember the lawn 0:05:56.640 --> 0:06:01.360 Chair episode with UM. With UM the first one that 0:06:01.560 --> 0:06:05.159 Courtney b Vance, the background actors have to be screaming 0:06:05.560 --> 0:06:10.280 horrific racial slurs because it's about us shooting all this 0:06:10.480 --> 0:06:14.280 and and Carrie is like saying, like, thank you so 0:06:14.360 --> 0:06:17.120 much for your performance. Like I know this is not easy. 0:06:17.200 --> 0:06:19.360 I know this is hard. This is taking so much 0:06:19.440 --> 0:06:22.440 energy and it's hard, ugly things to say. And like 0:06:23.720 --> 0:06:26.240 the girl is a leader. I mean, she's not going 0:06:26.279 --> 0:06:28.560 to run for president, but my good god, if I 0:06:28.600 --> 0:06:31.039 wish she would. We would be so lucky because it's 0:06:31.080 --> 0:06:32.960 not only you can't do yeah, And not only do 0:06:33.000 --> 0:06:35.960 we have Carrie Washington on this episode, we have a 0:06:36.000 --> 0:06:39.359 plethora of other amazing guest actors. One of my favorites 0:06:39.400 --> 0:06:42.040 is Matt Lesher, who plays Jimmy Chambers. Of course, George 0:06:42.120 --> 0:06:45.760 Newberne is in this episode who plays Charlie Freaking Kate 0:06:45.839 --> 0:06:51.520 Burton d oh Brendan Hines as Gideon Wallace, although in 0:06:51.520 --> 0:06:57.080 this episode he Doys did in this episode. Yo Bellamy 0:06:57.200 --> 0:06:59.440 Young is listed as a guest star in this episode 0:06:59.440 --> 0:07:01.880 because she's not a regular yet on the show. Bellamy 0:07:01.960 --> 0:07:06.200 did not become a regular until we got picked up 0:07:06.240 --> 0:07:08.039 for a second season. And by the way, we're talking 0:07:08.040 --> 0:07:11.160 today about episode one oh seven called Grant for the People, 0:07:12.080 --> 0:07:14.560 which aired on May seventeenth and twenty twelve. It was 0:07:14.600 --> 0:07:19.760 written by Shanda Rhymes, our other queen. There were two 0:07:19.800 --> 0:07:22.360 queens to make Scandal, Shawn Carry and it was directed 0:07:22.360 --> 0:07:25.040 by Roxanne Dawson. But at the time that we shot 0:07:25.040 --> 0:07:27.920 this episode, we didn't know we were going to get 0:07:27.920 --> 0:07:33.480 a second No, we had never aired an episode like yeah, 0:07:33.520 --> 0:07:35.640 we shot it and no one had seen it. So 0:07:35.640 --> 0:07:37.640 we were still in this like perfect little bubble where 0:07:37.640 --> 0:07:39.560 we have no clue how the show was going to 0:07:39.600 --> 0:07:42.840 be received. Listen, what I love about our show and 0:07:42.880 --> 0:07:46.160 about our cast is not not one year of our 0:07:46.280 --> 0:07:49.160 seven seasons did I ever or any of us ever 0:07:49.240 --> 0:07:51.560 feel like, ah cool, I'll see you guys next year. 0:07:51.600 --> 0:07:54.760 We were picked up. It was ever after every single 0:07:54.800 --> 0:07:57.720 season we were like, oh please God, I hope we 0:07:57.720 --> 0:08:00.800 were fortunate enough to get picked up. We never got 0:08:00.840 --> 0:08:03.600 cocky about this stuff. Never. We didn't take it for granted, 0:08:03.680 --> 0:08:07.800 no pun intended grant for the people. The name of 0:08:07.840 --> 0:08:12.480 this episode grant taken for granted for the people. But yeah, 0:08:12.520 --> 0:08:16.320 we were always just super humble and just like so great. 0:08:16.400 --> 0:08:21.800 That's because shit rolls down hill and carry. Yeah. Never, yes, 0:08:22.320 --> 0:08:25.400 never took the show, the job, or characters, the writing 0:08:25.440 --> 0:08:31.120 for granted. Before she comes on, which we're obviously tickled. Tickled, 0:08:31.520 --> 0:08:33.240 let me just tell you fill in the rest, which 0:08:33.320 --> 0:08:35.559 is we we said Brendan Hines is on this episode, 0:08:35.559 --> 0:08:38.520 but this be it because he died. We have Bryan 0:08:38.640 --> 0:08:42.360 Lesser is Tom Troy Winbush's Morris Elcott, love him so much. 0:08:42.520 --> 0:08:45.880 Shannon Cochrane is the Attorney General Sawyer. Mark Harrelick is 0:08:45.920 --> 0:08:50.040 the Press secretary. Marvin Colgate, You're fired, Marvin. That's my 0:08:50.080 --> 0:08:54.120 favorite by Aaron. Marvin. Get the fuck out. The synopsis 0:08:54.200 --> 0:08:56.600 is Olivia and the team rally after Quinn finds Gideon 0:08:56.600 --> 0:08:59.760 Wallace dying in his apartment. Cyrus turns to Olivia with 0:08:59.800 --> 0:09:03.559 an anouncement that affects fits his presidency. And that's all 0:09:03.600 --> 0:09:07.040 we're giving you. It's a very short synopsis. What did 0:09:07.120 --> 0:09:09.600 you think of my acting in this episode? Katie? I 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:15.080 love your act Katie, Katie, listen, can you look my 0:09:15.080 --> 0:09:19.240 my first page of notes, says Katie's performance in the 0:09:19.240 --> 0:09:21.920 scene where she walks in a Gideon and with the 0:09:21.920 --> 0:09:28.400 team is electric. It's guttural and raw. It's mesmerizing, literally 0:09:28.400 --> 0:09:31.280 the stuff that. Really, what are you doing to me? Willie? Willie? 0:09:34.760 --> 0:09:38.280 Oh my god, I love that. I told you. My 0:09:38.480 --> 0:09:42.320 friends called me Willie like for eighteen years of my 0:09:42.400 --> 0:09:48.840 life about you were so so good in this episode, Katie, 0:09:48.840 --> 0:09:52.160 Like truly, I think so. I think you thrive on. 0:09:52.280 --> 0:09:54.559 I think I'm the same too. It was such a 0:09:54.640 --> 0:09:59.600 you had to play all this raw like tragedy like death, 0:09:59.640 --> 0:10:02.400 and I think you you thrive and you just oh, 0:10:02.440 --> 0:10:05.400 you were just so real. Love a high steak moment, people, 0:10:05.559 --> 0:10:08.600 I love a high steak moment. And the shivering you 0:10:08.640 --> 0:10:11.600 were shivering through your lines. Oh my god. If you 0:10:11.640 --> 0:10:14.200 guys have not seen this episode, you gotta watch it. 0:10:14.200 --> 0:10:17.480 It's not just for finale episode of the first season 0:10:17.640 --> 0:10:21.400 and Quinn walks in and sees that giddy She's like, oh, 0:10:21.600 --> 0:10:24.000 great bagel place down thing and like I got your 0:10:24.000 --> 0:10:26.320 coffee and we fucked last night and like woo whoo. 0:10:26.440 --> 0:10:29.600 And then it's like oh no, and the coffee falls 0:10:29.600 --> 0:10:31.360 on the ground, which I remember being on a Friday 0:10:31.440 --> 0:10:33.360 night and they said, you can only do this once. 0:10:34.200 --> 0:10:36.599 I had to nail that coffee drop slip out of 0:10:36.600 --> 0:10:39.000 my hand that spoils everywhere one time. I love it. 0:10:39.360 --> 0:10:44.400 And then I see Giddyon just wow, scissors scissors in 0:10:44.440 --> 0:10:46.640 his neck that Billy Chambers put in there because he 0:10:46.679 --> 0:10:48.720 was really close. So a couple of things I remember 0:10:48.840 --> 0:10:51.240 is A that I had to nail that coffee drop 0:10:51.320 --> 0:10:56.280 once and b I had to reshoot pulling the scissors 0:10:56.280 --> 0:10:59.200 out of his neck. No, why do you remember? No, 0:10:59.520 --> 0:11:02.439 we shot the first season and I get a call 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:05.720 like months later saying you have to come in, And 0:11:05.960 --> 0:11:08.920 first of all, I was like, I'm fired always every 0:11:08.960 --> 0:11:12.960 time we got that call, I'm fired. After not getting fired, 0:11:12.960 --> 0:11:14.439 they were like, you have to come back in and 0:11:14.600 --> 0:11:19.200 shoot reshoot the Billy Chamber death scene, and I was like, 0:11:19.320 --> 0:11:21.160 are you kidding? That was like the hardest thing I've 0:11:21.200 --> 0:11:24.480 ever done in my entire life, like pulling the scissors out, screaming, crying, 0:11:24.520 --> 0:11:26.839 like trying to reach the phone and realizing he's dead 0:11:28.840 --> 0:11:32.679 because the first angle that they should the way they 0:11:32.720 --> 0:11:35.440 shot it the first time around, it looked like I 0:11:35.600 --> 0:11:40.439 killed him. Oh are you serious? This is my remembering 0:11:40.440 --> 0:11:49.080 of it. We will be back with more after the break, Okay, guys, 0:11:49.160 --> 0:11:54.480 without further a duty, Without further a duty, we would 0:11:54.520 --> 0:12:00.640 like to present We're the stupidest. We would like to 0:12:00.679 --> 0:12:04.880 present the one, the only, the Queen, the the i'm a, 0:12:05.080 --> 0:12:09.240 i'm a I'm getting top drawer. She's top drawer, She's 0:12:09.280 --> 0:12:12.800 tops of everything. She is our friend, she is one 0:12:12.800 --> 0:12:15.800 of the loves of our lives. She is our colleague. 0:12:16.600 --> 0:12:20.079 She is well we would just for real go over 0:12:20.120 --> 0:12:23.640 a cliff for this person. Yes, and also the biggest 0:12:23.720 --> 0:12:28.240 goofball just like us. Yes, here she is the one 0:12:28.280 --> 0:12:38.160 and only. Yeah, hello, you look so beautiful. We're so high. 0:12:38.240 --> 0:12:41.439 Tried to put on some concealer for you, guys. So 0:12:43.480 --> 0:12:48.080 I mean, I mean, I prefer the five am, four 0:12:48.280 --> 0:12:52.640 thirty am Monday morning in makeup trailer of Kerry Washington, 0:12:52.880 --> 0:12:55.360 that I miss some rings. I do wake up, and 0:12:55.400 --> 0:13:02.120 I'm like, those were pretty special insane times. Yeah. I 0:13:02.120 --> 0:13:04.200 saw on social media you posted about being in hair 0:13:04.240 --> 0:13:06.360 and makeup with Garma by your side when you guys 0:13:06.360 --> 0:13:09.200 were doing some press, and it's true. It's just like 0:13:10.040 --> 0:13:12.520 you know what I was worried. I was worried that 0:13:12.559 --> 0:13:15.840 when we didn't have the hair and Makeup trailer, that 0:13:15.920 --> 0:13:19.080 we wouldn't all still be obsessed with each other and 0:13:19.120 --> 0:13:20.439 in love with each other, you know, because you have 0:13:20.559 --> 0:13:22.960 like we could just take for granted our friendships because 0:13:22.960 --> 0:13:27.120 they were scheduled, but the fact that we're all still 0:13:27.240 --> 0:13:32.800 so madly in love with each other, it's everything. Yeah. 0:13:32.840 --> 0:13:34.840 But we were just saying before you came on that 0:13:35.000 --> 0:13:40.360 that comes from you, And I mean, look, we're all 0:13:40.480 --> 0:13:46.200 very special, yes, but you were How did you know 0:13:46.880 --> 0:13:50.120 how to be a number one like that? Like for real? 0:13:50.160 --> 0:13:52.280 Would you think it was like you had worked on 0:13:52.400 --> 0:13:55.040 so many things and had sort of always taken note 0:13:55.080 --> 0:13:57.720 of how to be a leader or it's just innately 0:13:57.800 --> 0:14:00.440 in you. So I'm having a little bit of weird 0:14:00.640 --> 0:14:05.320 Like I feel it's like a proud mommy because I 0:14:05.360 --> 0:14:08.120 feel like when I met you, Katie Lows, you were 0:14:08.200 --> 0:14:11.480 always asking me questions like this, But it wasn't for 0:14:11.520 --> 0:14:14.920 like a national podcast. It wasn't for like right, it 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:18.000 was for the press. Wasn't you ever have people questions 0:14:18.280 --> 0:14:20.800 not a little bit less like Barbara Walters to it 0:14:20.880 --> 0:14:26.200 and more just like I need to know one. Oh yeah, 0:14:26.240 --> 0:14:28.880 but you're so it's so sweet because it's still the 0:14:29.120 --> 0:14:31.360 essence of you, Like you have figured out a way 0:14:31.440 --> 0:14:36.720 to you know, stay, like you are just a naturally curious, yes, 0:14:36.920 --> 0:14:42.080 very you know, inquisitive, adventurous, ambitious person. So you have 0:14:42.640 --> 0:14:45.200 it's like, but it's no longer that five am version 0:14:45.240 --> 0:14:48.680 of like you this, it's like now this very formal 0:14:48.800 --> 0:14:57.360 presentational version, which I love, Thanks Carrie. I have I 0:14:57.360 --> 0:15:01.480 think the number one, number one in the whole history 0:15:01.480 --> 0:15:04.280 of number ones in the business. And do people know 0:15:04.360 --> 0:15:05.360 what it means to be a number one on the 0:15:05.400 --> 0:15:07.520 call sheet? Like do we have to explain that? Let's 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:12.400 explain it. So every character is assigned a number on 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:15.200 the call sheet based on how important that character is 0:15:15.240 --> 0:15:17.440 perceived to be on the show, and sometimes relative to 0:15:17.440 --> 0:15:19.520 the status of the actor playing them. And so if 0:15:19.520 --> 0:15:21.000 you're number one on the call sheet, you're like the 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:24.000 most important character according to the writers. And the producers. 0:15:24.840 --> 0:15:27.480 So I learned how to be a number one. I've 0:15:27.520 --> 0:15:29.520 had incredible number ones I've worked with through the years. 0:15:29.600 --> 0:15:32.880 Julia Stiles is an amazing number one. Force Whittakers an 0:15:32.880 --> 0:15:36.240 incredible number one, But hands down, the award for number 0:15:36.240 --> 0:15:40.560 one number one goes to Jamie Fox. He's a beast 0:15:40.800 --> 0:15:45.000 he is. He not only like does his homework, is 0:15:45.000 --> 0:15:48.360 fully prepared, is always happy to be there, really passionate, 0:15:48.480 --> 0:15:53.200 knows everybody's name, he takes care of the background. He's grateful, 0:15:53.320 --> 0:15:57.120 he's humble, he works really hard. He's all of those things. 0:15:57.160 --> 0:15:58.920 And you know, I worked with him on Ray and 0:15:58.960 --> 0:16:00.560 then ten years later on Jay Go, and so I 0:16:00.600 --> 0:16:03.160 got his seed. Like it really is who he is. 0:16:03.240 --> 0:16:05.960 He's just like Wow, he's a leader. He's a true 0:16:06.040 --> 0:16:08.840 leader and a generous leader. And he loves his job 0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:11.600 like he really he loves He gets that we're lucky 0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:13.400 to do what we do, and he never let a 0:16:13.480 --> 0:16:16.520 day go by without us all feeling that. And so 0:16:16.560 --> 0:16:19.240 I think, really, I just spent all those seasons on 0:16:19.280 --> 0:16:21.760 Scandal pretending to be Jamie FOXX. Hey, we love it. 0:16:21.800 --> 0:16:25.520 We were talking earlier carry about how you either before 0:16:25.560 --> 0:16:27.840 we shot a scene or after you would take a 0:16:27.880 --> 0:16:31.520 moment to address the background actors and just be like, 0:16:31.640 --> 0:16:33.560 thank you guys so much for being here. We could 0:16:33.600 --> 0:16:36.440 not have done this scene without you, guys, just the 0:16:36.600 --> 0:16:40.040 respect you showed background actors. And for someone who started 0:16:40.040 --> 0:16:43.040 in background work, I did a ton of background work before. 0:16:43.040 --> 0:16:44.960 Oh my god, I didn't know that I was in 0:16:45.160 --> 0:16:48.520 Green Card, I was in I did background work on 0:16:48.600 --> 0:16:53.880 student films even yeah, and then a little by Little Butt. 0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:56.240 But you know, it's rare that the lead actor or 0:16:56.240 --> 0:17:01.040 even producers or directors, you know, unfortunately, treat background actors 0:17:01.080 --> 0:17:03.960 with any sort of you know, I mean, you know, 0:17:04.040 --> 0:17:07.760 the sure like yes, yes, but you are the first, 0:17:07.760 --> 0:17:11.000 so important to scenes. Oh my gosh, can you imagine 0:17:11.200 --> 0:17:13.280 if we didn't have those background actors in the White House, 0:17:13.280 --> 0:17:15.600 we're just like a bunch of idiots and hallways like yeah, 0:17:15.640 --> 0:17:19.240 it's like so dumb. It's like you're making s ten yes. 0:17:19.280 --> 0:17:21.639 And how many times have you watched something where the 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:25.920 background totally ruins the scene. I don't believe any of 0:17:25.960 --> 0:17:28.240 those people are at a party. I don't believe any 0:17:28.240 --> 0:17:31.640 of those people are, you know, walking like background, looking 0:17:31.680 --> 0:17:37.280 at the camera. Background. They're so vital to the very similitar. Yes, 0:17:37.600 --> 0:17:39.680 and you could tell on our show, you can tell 0:17:40.880 --> 0:17:44.719 invested in what they're doing today. Just to jog your 0:17:44.760 --> 0:17:46.879 memory is about episode one oh seven, which is like, 0:17:46.880 --> 0:17:49.399 who is Quinn Perkins? Quinn pulls the night scissors out 0:17:49.400 --> 0:17:52.680 of Gideon's throat. Yeah, and I there's the scene where 0:17:52.960 --> 0:17:56.080 everyone is deciding, yeah, I'll jog your memory. I'll jog 0:17:56.119 --> 0:17:59.320 your memory. Everyone's like, do we don't they clean it up? 0:17:59.359 --> 0:18:02.120 Do we don't? Right? And you're like, we clean it up. 0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:04.560 But it was the example of an opa. It wasn't 0:18:04.560 --> 0:18:07.359 so much about character development. Maybe it was for other people, 0:18:07.400 --> 0:18:09.440 but not for me as much as it was like 0:18:09.520 --> 0:18:13.159 an ensemble theater piece of like do not drop your line, 0:18:13.359 --> 0:18:17.080 especially this is pace. Yes, this is like everyone has 0:18:17.160 --> 0:18:20.480 got one line, two lines, like, and it was keeping 0:18:20.480 --> 0:18:22.800 a ball or we got together on the weekend to 0:18:22.960 --> 0:18:28.600 rehearse yes, yes, yes, about because because it was a 0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:31.280 play play, we all thought it was a act play. 0:18:31.520 --> 0:18:34.680 And I remember Betsy Beers being like, you guys, did 0:18:34.760 --> 0:18:38.200 what our producer bring, Like, yeah, we've never heard of that, 0:18:38.200 --> 0:18:40.960 that's bananas, But we just it was a play. It 0:18:41.000 --> 0:18:42.720 was a one act play, and we were a bunch 0:18:42.760 --> 0:18:45.280 of theater kids who had been lucky enough to find 0:18:45.280 --> 0:18:48.520 ourselves on some screens, and so we got up together 0:18:48.600 --> 0:18:51.840 on our own to rehearse. I think back to that 0:18:51.920 --> 0:18:55.239 and just think we were so lucky that none of 0:18:55.320 --> 0:19:00.320 us had done a ton of prime time at work 0:19:00.359 --> 0:19:03.800 television show to know that we weren't supposed to do that. 0:19:05.280 --> 0:19:08.560 We're so lucky what we didn't know because and I think, 0:19:08.840 --> 0:19:12.359 but before Scandal, the job I'd had before Scandal, it 0:19:12.440 --> 0:19:14.320 was a movie, but the but right before I just 0:19:14.480 --> 0:19:17.280 it was a movie, but right before that they start 0:19:17.280 --> 0:19:19.200 before Scandal. I wanted to ask you that why TV. 0:19:19.520 --> 0:19:23.199 I originated a role in David Mammitt's play Race, and 0:19:23.240 --> 0:19:26.520 to this day, I feel like one of the reasons 0:19:26.600 --> 0:19:30.800 why God put me in that play was to figure 0:19:30.840 --> 0:19:33.800 out how to do that mammt thing, like how to 0:19:33.800 --> 0:19:36.119 affor them, how to say the word has written no 0:19:36.119 --> 0:19:38.159 matter what, how to get out of the way of 0:19:38.160 --> 0:19:41.720 the language. Because I felt like I brought so much 0:19:41.720 --> 0:19:44.720 of that with me to Scandal. The work ethic that 0:19:44.760 --> 0:19:47.800 you had on Scandal was to me, and I'm not one, 0:19:47.840 --> 0:19:50.679 but was like like being an Olympic athlete, which is 0:19:50.720 --> 0:19:52.760 what you are when you do Broadway, like, yeah, you 0:19:52.840 --> 0:19:55.080 do a race or you do a scandal, and you're 0:19:55.119 --> 0:19:58.240 a number one, like you are a machine. You can't 0:19:58.280 --> 0:20:00.600 get sick, you can't not know your life lines like 0:20:01.000 --> 0:20:07.760 it's so everyone is. It's like you're yeah, there's Me 0:20:07.800 --> 0:20:10.160 and Katie were talking about earlier and in other episodes 0:20:10.160 --> 0:20:12.280 that we've done, how you know we'd see you in 0:20:12.320 --> 0:20:14.240 the hair makeup trailer. You'd be on set, but you 0:20:14.280 --> 0:20:17.560 were always running lines. And Katie brought up you were 0:20:17.640 --> 0:20:22.160 running lines sometimes for the next scene. Oh yeah, yeah, next. 0:20:22.240 --> 0:20:25.040 They were like monologues. You'd be like, let's go to 0:20:25.080 --> 0:20:27.080 the next scene, Let's go to tomorrow's scene. Like it 0:20:27.160 --> 0:20:29.640 was like you had to do that shit non stop. 0:20:29.800 --> 0:20:32.960 I know every since Scandal, when somebody come up comes 0:20:33.040 --> 0:20:34.359 up to me on the set and says like, I'm 0:20:34.400 --> 0:20:36.399 really sorry, I know it's a lot today, I laughed 0:20:36.840 --> 0:20:43.320 like this is nothing. Yeah, oh my gosh. When you 0:20:43.440 --> 0:20:47.359 got the Scandal script, why television, why this script, why 0:20:47.440 --> 0:20:50.440 this part? And how did you get it? So everybody 0:20:50.520 --> 0:20:52.920 knew about this script, Like every black woman in Hollywood 0:20:52.920 --> 0:20:59.520 between the ages of like nine to ninety nine, everybody 0:20:59.520 --> 0:21:02.480 wanted it we knew it was like a historic, once 0:21:02.520 --> 0:21:05.639 in a lifetime kind of opportunity. I heard about it 0:21:05.680 --> 0:21:08.399 through the grape vine. My manager, who both know Caty, 0:21:08.440 --> 0:21:10.560 called me and she was like, there's this new Shanda 0:21:10.640 --> 0:21:13.720 Rhyme show. It starts a black woman. We feel like 0:21:13.760 --> 0:21:17.760 you're really right for it. But Shanda, I think Shanda 0:21:17.880 --> 0:21:19.800 said I was too young because the character was written 0:21:19.840 --> 0:21:22.480 to be in their forties, which I'm in my forties now, 0:21:22.960 --> 0:21:25.320 so at the time it was like I might be 0:21:25.320 --> 0:21:28.000 too young for it. But it felt when I read it, 0:21:28.480 --> 0:21:31.639 I literally did that thing which sounds so cliche, but 0:21:31.640 --> 0:21:33.679 I did that thing where I threw it across the 0:21:33.720 --> 0:21:36.119 room at some point because I was like this, like 0:21:36.200 --> 0:21:38.960 this was written for me, Like nobody asked to be 0:21:39.000 --> 0:21:42.280 playing this role. But and but I also knew that 0:21:42.320 --> 0:21:45.119 like there were forty other actresses who felt exactly the 0:21:45.200 --> 0:21:49.880 same and like really amazing actresses who I admire and love, 0:21:49.920 --> 0:21:51.479 and peers of mind and people I looked up too, 0:21:51.560 --> 0:21:54.040 and we all just read. We all just you know, read. 0:21:54.119 --> 0:21:56.520 And at first I met with Shanda actually because I 0:21:56.560 --> 0:21:58.840 was I had done a bunch of movies and so 0:21:59.200 --> 0:22:03.760 my team had negotiated a meeting first. So I went 0:22:03.800 --> 0:22:05.960 in and I remember getting off the elevator and seeing 0:22:05.960 --> 0:22:10.200 this huge sign that said Shonda Land and I was like, Oh, 0:22:10.240 --> 0:22:13.200 I don't know how this is gonna go. Like this 0:22:13.280 --> 0:22:17.080 seems a lot. Yeah. I was like, I like give 0:22:17.160 --> 0:22:21.760 up my citizenship and moved to somebody's land. And I 0:22:21.920 --> 0:22:24.080 was nervous. I was like, gosh, I don't know. I 0:22:24.119 --> 0:22:27.200 had done a couple arcs on television, but I'd obviously 0:22:27.240 --> 0:22:29.240 never been in a series. I'd done two other pilots 0:22:29.240 --> 0:22:32.960 that I got fired from. Really, yes, but so I 0:22:33.000 --> 0:22:36.240 met with Shanda for all the actors listening, My god, 0:22:36.400 --> 0:22:39.359 is that like a hopeful Yeah. The two other pilots 0:22:39.359 --> 0:22:42.000 I did before Scandal I was fired and both showed 0:22:42.040 --> 0:22:44.280 why because you were two talents that are too beautiful. No, 0:22:44.560 --> 0:22:49.120 both shows wet, but they replaced me. You know why, 0:22:49.560 --> 0:22:52.080 probably because they knew you were a star and you 0:22:52.119 --> 0:22:55.199 were stealing it from the rest. No, it was a 0:22:55.240 --> 0:22:57.800 little bit and Gamo, I know will identify with this. 0:22:58.320 --> 0:23:01.359 One of them was like they they wanted it to 0:23:01.480 --> 0:23:04.280 be a more like Girl from the Hood version of 0:23:04.320 --> 0:23:06.360 the character, and I was like, I just don't see 0:23:06.440 --> 0:23:08.240 it that way. And they were like, well, then you 0:23:08.280 --> 0:23:12.640 don't ask me. Yeah exactly. But the other one, I'm 0:23:12.640 --> 0:23:15.000 not really sure what happened, but yeah, so I so 0:23:15.040 --> 0:23:17.480 I met with Shawanda. I sat down and I loved 0:23:17.480 --> 0:23:21.800 her immediately. I just loved her immediately. I was like, oh, 0:23:21.800 --> 0:23:25.080 she's so lovely, and Betsy was so lovely, and she 0:23:25.160 --> 0:23:27.760