Sandra Oh Wanted to Play Olivia Pope on ‘Scandal’
Ramin Setoodeh New York Bureau ChiefAfter Shonda Rhimes created “Scandal,” a long list of actresses — including Taraji P. Henson and Gabrielle Union — auditioned for the part of Olivia Pope in the ABC drama that premiered in 2012.But before Kerry Washington nabbed the Emmy-nominated role as the White House crisis manager and “fixer,” another actor starring in a Shondaland TV series lobbied to play her.In an interview for Variety‘s Actors on Actors issue, Oh revealed to Washington that she wanted to play Pope after she read the “Scandal” pilot.