Kerry Washington: Privacy Comes First For The New Mom
Kerry Washington is good at keeping secrets. The Scandal star, who plays political handler Olivia Pope on the show, may have some media handlers of her own. News broke Friday that Washington welcomed a baby girl on April 21, born at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
The baby’s name is Isabelle Amarachi Asomugha.
Counting back the days, it seems news outlets did not learn about Washington’s new addition until a full 11 days after the event. The period of privacy is a given for most new moms, but a rarity in Hollywood. Consider the media that surrounded the birth of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s daughter North in June 2013. The birth not only made quick news, but was a dramatic plot point on the E! star’s reality show.
Flying under the radar is not new for Kerry, at least not for her life’s most precious moments. Washington’s low-key wedding to former NFL cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha last June was also highly secret, until news broke in early July 2013 of their nuptials. The actor’s parents served as witnesses for the ceremony in Hailey, Idaho.
Nnamdi Asomugha announced his retirement from football last December after 11 seasons, giving him more time to spend as a new dad. Asomugha had signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers in April. Even as her husband was making news with his departure from football, Kerry had yet to confirm she was pregnant, although the news had already been widely reported.
Washington’s baby bump debuted on the red carpet in January at the Golden Globe awards. The producers of Scandal, however, chose not to exploit Kerry’s pregnancy glow, opting instead to hide her expanding belly with creative costuming and camera angles. In addition, the series changed its shooting schedule by cutting four episodes from this season.
Washington told Us magazine her pregnancy affected her acting technique, saying “The biggest thing for me has been the challenge of how to be this person with the personal transformation that’s going on for me physically and how to stay true to this character.”
Kerry gave birth mere days following the dramatic finale of Scandal‘s season three, which aired on April 17. Although ABC has yet to announce the show’s renewal for season four, show creator Shonda Rhimes recently told NPR she knows exactly how the show will end, and when. In the meantime, Kerry Washington and her recently-retired husband – both in their 30s – can take some time to raise their new daughter.
[Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP]
