“Scandal” stars Kerry Washington and Tony Goldwyn, who played the famous TV couple of Olivia Pope and President Fitzgerald Grant for 7 seasons on ABC, reunited for an “Actors on Actors” chat with CNN and Variety.
Starting as a sleeper hit and becoming a cultural phenomenon that helped define pop culture in the 2010s, anchoring the ABC “TGIT” (Thank God It’s Thursday) lineup that also included the Shonda Rhimes shows “Grey’s Anatomy” and “How to Get Away With Murder.”
The Chemistry Between Tony Goldwyn & Kerry Washington is Still Sizzling
In one heart-melting moment, Tony told his costar, “You look as beautiful as you did way back then.” He remarked during the interview at how it’s been 15 years of doing photo shoots with Kerry, recalling how they shot the “Scandal” pilot in the spring of 2011. “You’re very kind,” Kerry told him, before joking, “It’s cause your eyesight is going, too.”
Tony soldiered through the interview with a hoarse voice, explaining he was hit by a “small cold” the week before the interview, and his voice disappeared two days before the interview despite feeling fine.
Right off the bat, the stars jumped into how they felt about their characters’ open-ended resolution, and where they think Olitz ended up in the future.
As fans can recall, the “Scandal” finale wrapped up with Fitz and Olivia meeting in the street and exchanging warm smiles and a “Hi” after breaking up earlier in the season.
They both agreed the simple exchange was a “brilliant” way to close things out, with Tony adding, “I felt that Fitz and Olivia are together.” He went on, “I felt that we had at the root of it was very real. And it’s why we could never get away from it. Ultimately these two people were there answer to each other, we just couldn’t evolve enough.”
Tony offered a theory that before pairing back up with Olivia, he imagines Fitz spends some time alone first to break patterns. He also suggested that the post-show Fitz is focused on supporting Olivia’s trajectory. The finale showed a photo of Olivia Pope on display in Washington D.C.’s National Portrait Gallery, suggesting her character’s ends up becoming president or holding some other office of major significance.
Tony revealed when he was offered the role and learned Kerry was up for the part of his co-lead, he immediately thought “I’ve been dying to work with Kerry Washington!”
Although “Scandal” started as a mid-season replacement without huge expectations, Tony and Kerry both agreed they sensed magic was in the making even at the very first rehearsal. “You never know how it’s gonna land, but it felt like we were making something magical,” Kerry said.
Kerry Washington Recalls Filming the 1st “One Minute” Scene
Kerry revealed because Olivia’s apartment set hadn’t been built yet, the iconic “one minute” couch scene where Olivia and Fitz longingly hold each other for a fleeting escape from reality was filmed in real unit at the El Royale apartments located at 450 North Rossmore Avenue in Hancock Park, Los Angeles. She recalled that the crew could “barely get the equipment” to the top of the building and remembered, “We actually sat on that couch for one minute, at least. It was so special.”
They also explored how Shonda made sure their romantic scenes stood out. Tony revealed Shonda had a rule which was “everyone has to talk incredibly fast, except for when Olivia and Fitz are alone together,” and that the showrunner frequently sent out emails urging everyone, “Faster! You’re not talking enough!”
