Kerry Washington says 'Scandal' cast is ready for 'no-holds-barred' final season
Washington, 40, said she feels "really blessed" at this point in her career.
— -- Kerry Washington described the cast of “Scandal” as “sad” to know the hit TV show is ending but “grateful” to be going out on their own terms.
“Sometimes as an actor you don’t know when you’re going to be out of a job and so it’s nice actually to go into the last season knowing that it’s our last season,” Washington, 40, said today on “Good Morning America.” "We’re already talking about how it’s going to be like no-holds-barred, better than ever, no holding punches, putting it all out on the table.”
She added of the show's end, “I think we’re all a little sad but also we feel grateful to have the information.”
ABC Entertainment announced Tuesday that “Scandal” will say goodbye after season 7. The show, which features Washington as D.C. fixer Olivia Pope, began in 2012 and has kept fans on the edge of their seats ever since.
Washington said the show, created by Shonda Rhimes, has had to outdo even its own suspenseful antics to reflect what is happening in the real-life Washington, D.C., under the Trump administration.
“As we have created sort of the imaginary world of the impossible in Washington, now that’s happening in the real world, so we’ve had to up our ante,” said Washington, who endorsed Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.
“Scandal” will end its sixth season Thursday night in a two-hour finale that Washington described as “crazy.” The two-hour season finale, which features Olivia Pope's mom, is a first for the series.
“I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined that we are ending the season with Olivia Pope who she is,” Washington said. “It’s beyond what I could have imagined.”
Washington said she also can’t fully imagine where her character will end up when the show ends.
“I really want to see Olivia happy but it’s hard to know in ShondaLand what that means,” Washington said, referring to Rhimes’ production company. “Shonda has really encouraged all of us to think about the idea that people define happiness in different ways.”
She continued, “Happiness is defined in different ways by different people. I really just want what’s best for Olivia.”
Washington described herself as “so grateful” at this point in her career. She began “Scandal” as a relatively unknown star and has now become a household name. The star also got married and had two children during the show’s run.
“It’s so exciting for me to be going into our final season and feel like the abundance of riches,” she said. “I have a beautiful husband and beautiful kids and I’m really happy about my life and I love my job and I get to bring all of that to work for one more season.”
“I feel really blessed,” she said.
ABC News' Lesley Messer contributed to this report.
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