The President, his wife, and his mistress have joined SAG-AFTRA in the picket lines – sort of. Deadline reports Tony Goldwyn (Ghost, The Belko Experiment) and Bellamy Young (Promised Land, Prodigal Son) reunited with their Scandal co-star Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned, American Son) on Friday. The three actors joined forces to pen signs along with the thousands of active guild members currently on strike for better liveable wages and verbiage around the use of AI technology. Washington captured the moment on her Instagram page.
The post included multiple photos and videos of the three volunteering on behalf of the striking SAG-AFTRA members throughout the industry. According to Deadline, Washington accompanied the post with information on how viewers can assist in their efforts as well as reminding all of what is at stake.
“If you want to get involved, there are soooooo many ways to support this labor strike,” Washington penned on the post. “Help spread our message, volunteer, donate what you can donate to the Emergency Financial Assistance Program, and more! I’ll link to all in my stories. Any bit helps! We’re in this together.”
Along with the photos, a video clip included both Goldwyn and Washington outlining why the actors and writers – for the first time in three decades – are both on strike.
“We are on strike to get a fair deal for all the workers in our industry who put so much on the line,” Goldwyn said via Deadline. “And we’re just asking for fairness for each other.”
Washington added, “And so that we don’t get replaced by computers.”
According to Deadline, Young captured her and Goldwyn days earlier in Times Square along with singer/actress Vanessa Williams (Ugly Betty, A Diva’s Christmas Carol) in a post outlining her commitment to the efforts for a fair deal.
“I’ve been a proud @sagaftra #UnionMember since 1992. I’m so grateful for the family & protections that our union has given me & I’m proud to stand vigilant so that those protections can continue to keep this family strong as our industry moves into a new paradigm,” Young wrote via the IG post.
ABC’s groundbreaking series, Scandal, aired for seven seasons and earned Washington two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. At the time she was the first Black actress nominated in the category since 1995. The series created by Shonda Rhimes (Bridgerton, Grey’s Anatomy) was loosely based on a real-life government fixer, Judy Smith. Washington starred as Olivia Pope, a crisis management expert who found herself in her own series of crises as she was having an active affair with the President of the United States, Goldwyn’s Fitz Grant. As the two kept their love hidden from the country, they failed at keeping it a secret from Grant’s wife, Mellie Grant, played by Young.
All seven seasons of Scandal are available to stream on Hulu.