“I think you should always be worried,” Foley revealed. “When it comes to Rowan, what it comes to what he’s capable of, and when it comes to Jake pushing those buttons, always be worried.” Speaking of being worried, I was worried that Rowan had actually stabbed Jake in that brilliant dinner scene at Papa Pope’s house. So how did they do that? A hand double? Not so fast. “It was my hand,” Foley explained. “It’s a funny trick. They put the knife in [the table] first, and then Rowan pulls it out very fast, and they reverse the film. That’s why I can look so cool and not flinch at all! That’s the trick! And don’t think Joe Morton didn’t want to get a good stab in me, but no.” [Laughs]
The scene itself actually proved to be one of Foley’s most difficult but, in the end, one of the most rewarding. “Those are the kinds of scenes that I love—where everybody has a mouth load and a bunch to do—but that was a difficult one for me because whatever reason that day, the words weren’t coming out of my mouth the way I wanted. It’s always a wrestling match. They wanted him to stand and me to sit, and I was like, ‘Nuh-uh! I need to get up there!’ It’s a power thing, trying to protect the character. I think we got to a happy place, and I think it turned out really well.”
Foley’s costar Tony Goldwyn was also in attendance at the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic (turns out he use to take an old girlfriend to the park grounds on dates when he young!) and shared his thoughts on Mellie’s heartbreaking scene with members of Fitz’s cabinet. “Fitz is very preoccupied with some dark things in that episode, and the combination of the humor of coming in to watch the situation but also watching Mellie humiliate herself is one of the things that I really love about what Shonda does about that relationship. These two people often loathe one another but also care deeply about each other. Watching Bellamy is so masterful.”
Something else that Goldwyn is loving this season is the opportunity to share scenes with other cast members as well. Particularly, Darby Stanchfield (Abby). “I actually sent her an email yesterday that I thought her work was so great. We were separated as characters, so it’s amazing to see her branch out. She’s just so great to work with.”
But what’s up with Fitz not knowing Abby’s name is NOT Gabby? “It’s a passive-aggressive thing,” explains Goldwyn. “But then he realizes she’s his connection to Olivia instead of what’s painful about Olivia. That’s what I thought was really cool in that last scene.”
Later that evening, I spent time with Bellamy Young (looking like royalty in Pamela Roland at the Carousel of Hope Gala to support juvenile diabetes), who, like Goldwyn said, is “masterful” as Mellie Grant. (By the way, do you know what else is masterful? Bellamy Young on last Thursday’s episode of The Talk. The ladies of the CBS chatfest had her play a hilarious Scandal-esque game, and she could not have been more adorable. I was also on the show, and you can watch that episode here!)
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