Kerry Washington shares photo from Scandal wrap party with 'OG' Olivia Pope
The Scandal wrap party brought the show full circle by inviting the woman who started it all: Judy Smith, the basis for Kerry Washington’s lead character, Olivia Pope.
After an emotional day for the cast and crew of Scandal — many of whom shared the experience on social media — the juggernaut Shondaland drama celebrated its conclusion with a party Saturday. On Sunday, Washington posted a picture of herself with Smith, the famed crisis manager who inspired her character.
“I took a lot of pictures at last night’s #Scandal wrap party but NOT with my own phone,” Washington captioned the photo. “Except for this one. It’s so blurry. But I had to post. Couldn’t resist. Me & the real Olivia Pope. The inspiration for it all. The OG. #JudySmith,”
A post shared by Kerry Washington (@kerrywashington) on Mar 18, 2018 at 1:39pm PDT
Scandal creator Shonda Rhimes conceived of the show based off Smith (who serves as a consultant and co-executive producer) and her career in Washington. In 2013, Rhimes described in an interview with EW the original concept for the show. “I couldn’t write Judy Smith as the character, mainly because Judy’s life is so confidential,” she said. “I didn’t start writing until I knew what the pilot was, and I knew what the pilot was when I knew [the lead character] was sleeping with the president. … Originally the president was her father, and it was much less interesting.”
Scandal airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on ABC. The final episode will air April 19.
