'White women tell me they want to BE Olivia Pope': Kerry Washington on how her Scandal character transcends racial boundaries
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Kerry Washington insists she is not much like her on-screen Scandal alter ego Olivia Pope.
For a start Washington, who plays the central character in the hit ABC political thriller, drinks alcohol 'no more than two or three times a year' - unlike Pope, who is partial to a goblet of wine after a hard day's graft running a crisis management firm.
One thing 36-year-old Washington is toasting to, though, is how her character has made such an impact on all strata of society and, as she describes it, cut across racial boundaries.
Taking centre stage: Kerry Washington looks stunning in a cutaway swimsuit as she takes the cover of the August edition of U.S. Vanity Fair magazine
In a new interview with the August edition of U.S. Vanity Fair, Washington reveals how she has been surprised at the level of veneration her character has garnered, particularly from the white community.
She explained: 'One of the most profound things for me about the show is the number of white women of all ages who come up to me and say: "I want to be Olivia Pope".
'It's especially profound in a place like South Africa. It's called The Fixer over there and it's just started its second season.
'The fact that white women can see this woman of colour as an aspirational character is revolutionary, I think, in the medium of television.'
In character: The actress, 36, plays the role of Olivia Pope, who runs a crisis management firm
Washington, who according to the Vanity Fair article identifies herself as a feminist, went onto ruminate that Pope also resonates so powerfully with the audience because she is presented as such a strong-willed, powerful woman.
'I don't think white women would feel that way about Olivia if her identify as a woman, period, wasn't first in their minds.'
Scandal centres on the Pope And Associates firm, a group of lawyers and investigators who go about covering-up secrets and protecting the public images of the rich and powerful in Washington D.C.
The show started off as a seven-episode, mid-season filler last year.
By Season Two the Shonda Rhimes-created drama had well and truly got its feet under the table of the ABC schedule, running a full 22 episodes to a growing audience, tipping past the 9m mark on the May 16 season finale.
The third season begins filming next month and will start airing on ABC from September in its regular Thursday night slot.
Washington, who was born in The Bronx, New York, is also referred to in the highest regard by Rhimes, who like Pope is a highly successful African-American woman in her field, already having Grey's Anatomy and its spin-off Private Practice under her belt.
Rhimes told Vanity Fair: '[Washington] knows every single person's name [on set].
'She gave out the prizes in our little weight-loss competition that we had on set.
'And - more importantly - and this is a thing I am really trying to learn from her - I have never heard Kerry Washington complain.
'That sounds like a casual thing to toss off, but think about the fact that she works more hours than anybody. I literally never hear her complain. That is a very rare breed of person.'
Washington has also appeared in a string of successful movies including Django Unchained and Ray.
She managed to score the part of the protagonist in Scandal after beating off some stiff competition, including form actress Gabrielle Union who has admitted to having read for the part.
For the full interview, go to the Vanity Fair website.
Double talent: Kerry, seen here with Shonda Rhimes, the creator of the hit ABC show, in Los Angeles in February
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2353722/Kerry-Washington-Scandal-character-Olivia-Pope-transcends-racial-boundaries.html#ixzz2XufWwXJe
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