‘Scandal’ Cast Teases the Final Episodes of Season 4

With only two episodes left in “Scandal’s” fourth season, the cast eagerly hyped what’s to come during a panel at the Directors Guild of America on Friday evening in Hollywood.

“This finale episode, I mean, I just… I turned to Shonda [Rhimes]. I was like, ‘Where do we go from here? Are you for real? Now what?’ It’s crazy,” said star Kerry Washington, seeming genuinely bewildered.

Bellamy Young (Mellie Grant) also heaped praise on the showrunner, including the foreboding statement, “Shonda has shown no mercy.”

But apart from teasing general chaos and drama – two of the show’s hallmarks to be sure – some cast members provided further insight. Guillermo Diaz (Huck) said the season’s penultimate episode will be “a really dark” one. The episode’s director, Oliver Bokelberg, who also directed the episode titled “YOLO” from the third season when Diaz’s character tortures Quinn Murphy (Katie Lowes) by ripping out her teeth, has a track record that reinforces Diaz’s tease.

Lowes, whose real-life pearly whites remain fully intact, said an upcoming episode will be about the military – another example of “Scandal’s” propensity to tackle social issues like the current season’s Ferguson-themed episode “The Lawn Chair.”

Portia de Rossi, who has enjoyed a lengthy guest-star arc in season 4, hinted during the panel that she might return for season 5 when she held up one finger and mouthed “one more” to the audience. She also engaged in some rapid-fire banter during the panel with Joshua Malina, saying that the “Scandal” cast is the best cast she has ever seen and be a part of. “And she was on ‘Arrested Development,’” Malina jumped in. “They were funnier,” de Rossi retorted with a wink.

But whether or not de Rossi sticks with her favorite cast for another season, the actor’s minds for the time being are focused on the next two Thursdays (the next episode airs May 7 with the season finale on May 14). And after four seasons of practice keeping “Scandal’s” twists and turns under lock and key, the casts seemed to have perfected their ability to tease. As Darby Stanchfield said on the carpet, “The structure of everything explodes.” Like a literal explosion? “Uhhh… maybe.”

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