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season 1-7

Creator, Showrunner

As a staple in the Shonda Rhimes programming block known as “TGIT,” the Washington, D.C. drama follows a political fixer named Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington) and her team of associates who sacrifice their time, and often their morals, to “handle” unimaginable crises affecting the nation’s elite. Throughout the last six seasons, Scandal has used OMG storytelling to explore political culture, gender disparities, sexual politics and race in America.

“But the idea that we should put a black woman as the lead of a show and keep her perfect, to me would have made a very unsuccessful show.”

– Shonda Rhimes

The Gladiators of ‘Scandal’ Leave the Arena

In Creating “Scandal” And Olivia Pope, Shonda Rhimes Changed The TV Landscape

Kerry Washington, Tony Goldwyn and the Scandal Cast Are Reuniting Virtually — for a Good Cause

Shonda Rhimes

Creator, Showrunner

Shonda Rhimes is an award-winning television creator, producer and New York Times best-selling author. She is also the CEO of Shondaland, the global media company that encompasses storytelling through brand partnerships, merchandise, and content for film, streaming, audio, digital and editorial. In her career, Rhimes’ work has earned numerous awards and changed the face of television. In 2017, Rhimes shifted the entertainment industry’s business model when she left network television and brokered an unprecedented agreement for Shondaland to produce streaming content exclusively in partnership with Netflix. Shondaland’s first series “Bridgerton,” most watched series debut in Netflix history. Rhimes first scripted creation, “Inventing Anna,” will be next on the company’s slate.

Rhimes is the first woman to create three television dramas that have achieved the 100 episode milestone. Those shows, “Grey's Anatomy,” the longest-running medical drama in history, its spinoff “Private Practice,” and the groundbreaking series “Scandal” for ABC, changed the face of television by proving that series which feature characters of color are more financially powerful in terms of advertising dollars and audiences than all white series. This business model is now the norm for all of network TV. Shondaland continued to make history with “How to Get Away with Murder” for which star Viola Davis became the first black woman to receive a Best Actress in a Drama Emmy. For five TV seasons, Shondaland shows occupied ABC’s entire Thursday night schedule, creating a powerful brand well-known to fans and advertisers as TGIT.

Rhimes is the recipient of numerous awards including the Peabody Award, career achievement awards from the Writers Guild of America, Producers Guild of America and Director’s Guild of America, several AFI Awards for Television Program of the Year and NAACP Image Awards as well as champion awards from Planned Parenthood, Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD and The Feminist Majority as well as the Harvard Medal. In 2018, Rhimes was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.