It is not quite the White House, and there are no stolen kisses in the Oval Office, but Scandal fans are getting something we absolutely needed. Kerry Washington and Tony Goldwyn, the actors behind one of television’s most obsessed-over couples, are reuniting on screen as part of Variety and CNN’s 24th season of Actors on Actors.
Washington and Goldwyn spent seven seasons as Olivia Pope and President Fitzgerald Grant on Shonda Rhimes’ political thriller, a show that turned Thursday nights into a national event and made the phrase “It’s handled” part of the cultural vocabulary. Their on-screen chemistry was the beating heart of the series, and years after the finale, the Olitz fandom never really went anywhere. What kept that flame alive off screen was the pair themselves. Washington and Goldwyn have continued to champion their Scandal legacy in real life, showing up for each other at events, gushing over one another in interviews, and feeding the Olitz shipping community just enough to keep the fandom thriving. Fans are fully aware that both are happily married to other people, but that has never stopped anyone from loving what Washington and Goldwyn have, which is a genuine, warm, and deeply affectionate friendship that feels like a direct extension of the characters they played for nearly a decade.
Both actors are back in the awards conversation with new projects. Washington is earning attention for Imperfect Women, while Goldwyn is contending with roles in Hacks and Law & Order. Their Actors on Actors conversation will stream first at 9 a.m. ET on CNN’s platform, then at 11:59 p.m. ET on Variety’s YouTube page on June 6.
The producers clearly leaned into nostalgia this season. Scandal is one of the several pairings are reunions of iconic casts: Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow kick things off on June 3, bringing Friends energy to the Emmy conversation. Kit Harington and Peter Dinklage of Game of Thrones sit down on June 5. Josh Hutcherson and Elizabeth Banks from the Hunger Games franchise close out the reunion run on June 11.
Beyond the reunions, the season is stacked with some of the most compelling names in television right now. Keke Palmer sits down with Sharon Stone on June 4, Colman Domingo joins Sarah Pidgeon on June 14 representing Euphoria and The Four Seasons, and Tracy Morgan brings his signature energy to a conversation with Marcello Hernández on June 10.
The bar is high. Last December’s Oscar-focused season generated a record 247 million social views. Variety’s annual Actors on Actors TV issue hits newsstands June 3, with photography by Mary Ellen Matthews.
Full Actors on Actors Season 24 Schedule
June 3: Jennifer Aniston (The Morning Show) and Lisa Kudrow (The Comeback)
June 4: Keke Palmer (The ‘Burbs) and Sharon Stone (Euphoria)
June 5: Kit Harington (Industry) and Peter Dinklage (The Lowdown)
June 6: Kerry Washington (Imperfect Women) and Tony Goldwyn (Hacks, Law & Order)
June 7: Paul Anthony Kelly (Love Story) and Patrick Ball (The Pitt)
June 8: Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live) and Rachel Sennott (I Love LA)
June 9: Rhea Seehorn (Pluribus) and Bryan Cranston (Malcolm in the Middle: Life’s Still Unfair)
June 10: Marcello Hernández (Saturday Night Live) and Tracy Morgan (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins)
June 11: Josh Hutcherson (I Love LA) and Elizabeth Banks (The Miniature Wife)
June 12: Noah Wyle (The Pitt) and Sally Field (Remarkably Bright Creatures)
June 13: Claire Danes (The Beast in Me) and Richard Gadd (Half Man)
June 14: Colman Domingo (Euphoria, The Four Seasons) and Sarah Pidgeon (Love Story)
June 15: Jamie Lee Curtis (Scarpetta) and Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: SVU)