Oct 15, 2026 · 55 min
Kerry Washington makes ownership central to Hollywood opportunity
Matt Barnes Tells Kerry Washington He Wants To Hire Olivia Pope
Kerry Washington connects her career, production work, and personal history to a broader argument for creative control and opportunity for Black women.
- 1Washington founded a production company to create opportunities rather than wait for Hollywood to offer them.
- 2She reflects on Scandal, Olivia Pope, and the possibility of returning to the role in a film.
- 3A family revelation on Finding Your Roots reshaped Washington’s understanding of her father and brought unexpected healing.
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Washington recounts discovering through Finding Your Roots that her father was conceived with a sperm donor, and how the revelation reshaped her family relationships.
The brief
Kerry Washington joins Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson to discuss Animals, her production company, and why ownership matters when Black women create in Hollywood.
Washington argues that artists should build control and opportunity instead of waiting for permission, linking her work on Reasonable Doubt and Imperfect Women to that mission.
She revisits Scandal, auditioning for Shonda Rhimes, and Olivia Pope’s impact, while leaving open the possibility of a film continuation.
The conversation turns personal as Washington discusses depression, an eating disorder, therapy, marriage, and the family revelation uncovered through Finding Your Roots.
Her account of learning that her father was conceived with a sperm donor shows how a public career can intersect with private family healing.