Sandra Oh tells Kerry Washington she lobbied Shonda Rhimes to play Scandal's Olivia Pope

Variety

“I’ve got to tell you, I remember exactly where I was when I read that damn pilot,” Oh, who was then on Grey's Anatomy, tells Washington as part of Variety‘s Actors on Actors issue. “I was on Grey’s. We were on stage five. Someone snuck it to me, I don’t know who it was, but I got my hands on that pilot and I read it and I was just like, ‘How could I play Olivia Pope?' ... I remember going to Shonda, and it’s like, ‘How could I do this?' 'What is this script? Could I do this too?’ She goes, ‘No, you’ve got to play Cristina Yang!'” Washington responded: “You have a job girl!” Oh added: “But I also feel like it’s so wonderful and rare when you get in your hands something that you know is electric, that you can feel. I’m so glad it was you.” ALSO: Sandra Oh and Kerry Washington discuss what they've learned from Shonda Rhimes.