‘Scandal’ Creator Shonda Rhimes Knows How And When The Series Will End

Scandal creator Shonda Rhimes recently revealed that she knows how and when the series will end.

Scandal focuses on Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington), a former White House Director of Communications turned crisis management consultant who is known as the best “fixer” in Washington, D.C. She and her team of “Gladiators” have a penchant for making their clients’ problems disappear at any cost.

Washington’s character is partly based on Judy Smith, who served as Special Assistant and Deputy Press Secretary to former President George H.W. Bush. After leaving the White House, Smith started her own crisis management firm, Smith & Company, whose clients included Monica Lewinsky, Michael Vick, and Wesley Snipes.

Shonda Rhimes told Morning Edition that the Washington, D.C., she created for Scandal is dark, amoral, and “a little Shakespearean.” But similar to Grey’s Anatomy, which she also created and executive produces, Rhimes has a clear expiration date in mind for Scandal.

“I knew the end of Grey’s Anatomy, and then we kept going, so that I finally just had to write that and move past it,” Rhimes said. “Who knows, at this point, how long that show’s going to go? It’s going to go as long as I feel interested in what happens to those characters.”

The first part of the tenth season of Grey’s Anatomy premiered September 26. The second part will premiere on February 27, 2014.

But fear not, Gladiators — Scandal isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. The third season premiered October 3 to a series high of 10.52 million viewers.

“It is very political. The political landscape on the outside, in the real world, will change — possibly before Scandal is over,” Rhimes said.

“But I feel like there is a finite amount of Scandal to be told,” she added. “So I know what the end of Scandal will be, and I feel really good about that. And I can see where the end point is. And I don’t think I’m going to change that…. I know how long I think it will be. But we’ll see.”

Treme star Khandi Alexander was recently cast as Olivia’s mother, Maya Lewis. Alexander made her first appearance in last Thursday’s episode, “Icarus,” in a flashback to Olivia’s childhood. Friends star Lisa Kudrow was cast as Congresswoman and presidential hopeful Josephine Marcus in August.

Scandal airs Thursdays at 10 pm on ABC.