Here's How 'Scandal,' 'HTGAWM' Crossover Will Deal With the Liza Weil Conflict
We've been seeing a lot of TV show crossovers lately, but they don't always blend smoothly together. Sometimes, there's a sticky situation to handle, like in the case of the upcoming crossover episodes of "Scandal" and "How to Get Away With Murder."
The problem lies in the fact that actress Liza Weil has appeared in both series. Before her days of starring as Bonnie Winterbottom in "HTGAWM," she had a recurring role in "Scandal" Season 1. Weil played Amanda Tanner, a former White House intern who claimed to have had an affair with the president. In a crazy turn of events, she was murdered, so although there's no need for her to play two roles in the crossover, it would still be awkward if the "Scandal" characters came into contact with Amanda's doppelganger. Not surprisingly, though, Shondaland has a plan.
When the crossover episodes air, we won't see Weil appear at all in the "Scandal" episode, EW reports. Not only that, the show's writers avoided putting Bonnie in any scenes with the "Scandal" characters during the "HTGAWM" episode. That way, there will be no need to address the fact that the attorney looks exactly like the ill-fated intern, which is probably for the best. Instead, we'll get "black girl magic on steroids," according to Viola Davis, whose character, Annalise Keating, will interact with Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington).
The two-hour crossover event will air Thursday, March 1 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.