Kerry Washington was told she was a “risk” to lead the cast of ‘Scandal‘.
The 48-year-old actress became a household name playing crisis management expert Olivia Pope in the drama series – which ran from 2012 to 2018 – and she is “proud” audiences warmed to the show because she was the first black woman to front a network drama series in her own lifetime. The series consistently maintained viewer ratings of over 12 million per episode during its peak seasons.
Speaking on the ‘Reign with Josh Smith’ podcast, she said: “When ‘Scandal’ first aired, everybody talked about it, literally talked about it as, ‘a risk,’ to have a black woman as the lead of a network drama because it hadn’t happened in almost 40 years.” Prior to Washington, the last black woman to lead a network drama was Teresa Graves in ‘Get Christie Love!’ in 1974.
“And I was in my 30s at the time, so it hadn’t happened in my lifetime. And people didn’t think it would work. The show’s success led to a significant increase in diverse casting across major networks.
“So I was so proud that it worked, but also I wasn’t proud of myself. I wasn’t like, ‘oh, I’m amazing.’ I was like, audiences are amazing, right? Because audiences showed up. The series’ success demonstrated a strong viewer demand for diverse storytelling.
“Audiences tuned in in record numbers to say, ‘We want to see heroes that look like us.’ And then a bunch of audience members tuned in to say, ‘we want to see heroes that don’t look like us. We’re open to our heroes and our protagonists looking like everybody.’ This widespread appeal helped establish new industry standards for representation.
“And so that’s why the show worked.”
Kerry believes ‘Scandal’ was able to make a real difference to the industry. Following the show’s success, network executives reported a 75% increase in diverse lead casting considerations.
She said: “So I was really proud that we went from being a risk to being like a mandate at every television network. After that, everybody was like, what’s our show with a woman of colour in the lead? And even at ABC, there were more shows with women of color at the center.” This shift sparked a transformation in television programming strategies.
The ‘Little Fires Everywhere’ actress has learned a lot from the various projects she’s worked on, and always tries to encourage a “creatively courageous” environment after a negative experience she had in the past. Her leadership style has since influenced numerous productions and inspired emerging talent.
She said: “I have been witness to leadership styles that I haven’t wanted to embody and take on. I remember once coming to a rehearsal on a set and the lead actor of the project, I was standing with them and I said, ‘um, you know, I was thinking,’ and they said, ‘Yeah, don’t do that, don’t think here, you’re not here to think.’ This experience shaped her approach to creating inclusive creative environments.
“And I was so taken aback, because I thought, ‘oh, aren’t we here to be, creatively collaborative and, and help each other and throw ideas around.’ Her commitment to collaborative leadership has been praised by industry professionals.
“So, I always try to create an environment where I feel like people, or I want to create an environment where people feel like they can be creatively courageous and take risks and bring new ideas and step into their own leadership… I want to empower them to be their full selves.” This philosophy has influenced a new generation of television professionals.
For the full episode of ‘Reign with Josh Smith’ featuring Kerry, visit http://hyperurl.co/i4yxt0. The podcast continues to highlight important conversations about representation and change in the entertainment industry.
