Scandal’s Bellamy Young on her music, Shonda Rhimes, and what it’s like to be the sweetest bitch on TV.
Harper’s Bazaar: Have you gotten a sneak peak of the new season in its final form?
Bellamy Young: We just watched the first episode yesterday as a cast. There are a couple of things that I think people are just going to lose their minds over. There’s one line in the first scene between Olivia [Pope] and her dad—now that you know it’s her dad—I really want see how it lands.
HB: Last season ended on a series of cliffhangers. That father reveal was Star Wars level. Do we get any resolution in the beginning of Season 3?
BY: Now where would the fun in that be? This episode plays like other shows’ whole seasons. We jump right in and stir up the crazy.
HB: I hear you’re in the middle of filming a game-changing episode for Mellie.
BY: Yeah, this episode (307) is incredible. Bless her heart, Mellie’s never had to face something like this. She and I are just going to get through the week the best we can.
HB: We’ve chatted before, so I know you’re a perfect southern belle. How do you transform into Mellie so totally?
BY: A lot of my job is done for me because the scripts we get are like jewels. Different writers write different characters, and I’m blessed to say Shonda Rhimes writes Mellie. Usually in a writer’s room, the writers break the stories together, and a different writer is in charge of each episode. In our case, they break the story together, and they all write the character and the storylines they’re in charge of and then bring them back together. That’s why we have such astonishing cohesion of voice in each character.
It’s an incredible way to work as an actor because of the consistency. Even phonetically, I’ve noticed, I will always have verb-adverb, verb-adverb, and I will usually have a list of three. There are just some very fundamental building blocks that remain the same that allow you to believe that you are a real, functioning human being.
HB: Does playing Mellie get the mean out of your system?
BY: I will admit, I’m so conflict-averse in real life that it is sort of like wish fulfillment, saying all those things that I usually get hesitant to say.
HB: In addition to its strong cast of characters, the show is built on its plot twists. How far in advance do you learn about them?
BY: We read the script cold at lunch the day before we start shooting the episode. So we have maybe sixteen hours before you stand up and give a career-changing monologue. You meet it like life. You never know what’s coming.
HB: Is it ever frustrating to be the one everyone loves to hate?
BY: I don’t mind at all. Anyone who’s loved has gone through an hour when they’ve loved unrequitedly. And a lot of women have gone through situations of being the woman behind the man. And a lot of women have felt the frustration of being far more capable than their circumstances allow them to show. Mellie is living all of that, in every moment. That’s so many people’s truth, so I think it’s a blessing to have that scarlet letter on my chest—even though I didn’t do the adultery.
R: I hear that you’re also working on an album.
BY: I am! We have a little break from filming in November, and I’m going to put together an album of covers. It’s like Billy Bragg, Pink, Bonnie Raitt, Tom Waits, Ryan Adams—just songs that I love. It’s truly self-indulgent, I’m not going to lie.
R: So, the ultimate mix tape.
B: The ultimate mix tape! I love it—I just named it. You know, one day in the future, when I’m 90, I want people to remember that I sing.
R: What’s most played on your iTunes right now?
BY: I just bought that new Civil Wars album. This week is super difficult for Mellie, the character, and for me as an actor, and Glenn Gould is helping me. I’m also a child of the ’80s so I get a little Fleetwood Mac on if I want to feel better.
Scandal Season 3 premieres tonight on ABC at 10/9c.
