Sandra Oh tells Kerry Washington how Shonda Rhimes wouldn't let her star in ‘Scandal’

At this point, Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal are pretty much synonymous with tears, drama of both the professional and personal variety, and very (very) full glasses of wine (ahem — Olivia Pope). The kind of shows where you fall in love with characters, find yourself obsessing over storylines, sitting on the edge of your seat during tense moments and, of course, selecting ‘Yes’ when your TV asks you if you’re still watching. But even the most die-hard fans of either series, might be surprised to learn that Grey's star, Sandra Oh was actually turned down for the role of Olivia Pope, made famous by Kerry Washington on Scandal. During a recent video chat for Variety’s Actors on Actors issue, Kerry Washington joined Sandra Oh for a candid chat about the wildly successful shows which they’ve starred in, their experience as producers, and what they learned from Shonda Rhimes — the mastermind behind both Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy, as well as How to Get Away with Murder and Station 19. “I remember exactly where I was when I read that damn pilot,” Sandra revealed to Kerry, explaining that she was on set of Grey’s when someone snuck her the script for the pilot episode of Scandal. “I don’t know who it was”, she said. “But I got my hands on that pilot and I read it and I was just like, ‘How could I play Olivia Pope?’”Apparently, Sandra then went to Shonda to ask how she could play the part, but Shonda wasn't into it. Oh: 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: “You have a job, girl.”Oh: 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.Washington: Yep. Yep.Oh: I’m so glad it was you.