'Scandal' Star Kerry Washington on Season 4's 'High Stakes' and Olivia Pope's New Look

Gladiators, buckle your seat belts — Scandal Season 4 is going to be one wild ride!

Fans can expect more twists, more turns, and more scandalicious moments when the ABC drama returns Sept. 25 in its new 9 p.m. timeslot. And star Kerry Washington promises more shocks.

Yahoo TV chatted with the new mom, who also dished on the supremely important topic of Olivia Pope's wardrobe. And we tried as hard as we could to squeeze some spoilers out of her. Read on to see if we were successful!

Looking back, what stands out about last season?
Shonda [Rhimes] has talked about Season 3 as being like the "dark season." And it's a season where you really got challenged by the backstories of a lot of the characters — Olivia's family, Mellie's past. There was just a lot of really intense, dark revelations about who these people are. I think that's part of what differentiates that season in a big way.

[Related: Get Caught Up on 'Scandal' Before the New Season Starts]

In the teaser, we see Olivia is relaxing on a beach, glass of red wine in hand. What could possibly draw her away from that paradise?
Good question! I can't answer that question! But yeah, I think you're right in your instincts. You just have to tune in.

Is Olivia really capable of completely relaxing and letting it all go? Could you do that?
For a little while. [Laughs.] I don't think I could live in the place where she winds up, where you find her, forever. I think the question of whether or not she can is a good reason to tune in.

In the finale, she left to go "stand in the sun" with Jake. Do you think Olivia is cut out for that kind of normal life — settling down, having kids, all that?
I don't really know what I see for her. I know that what I want for Olivia is for her to be happy, but I'm not really sure what that happiness looks like for her. She is really drawn to her work and it's defined her in a big way, or it has up until this point. I'm not sure if it will anymore. And her relationships have defined her in a big way. It's interesting: I don't know what her happy looks like. I just know that's something that I want for her.

[Photos: Check Out More New Pics of the 'Scandal' Cast]

You're a new mom. Can you imagine Olivia as a mother?
I don't know. That's really more of a Shonda Rhimes question than a Kerry question. I'm just not really sure. I know there've been times when she's imagined it in the past.

What's going on with everybody Olivia left behind? Are the Gladiators running amok? Is Fitz down in the dumps?
Gosh, I really would get in so much trouble if I answered that! I will say that those questions get answered in the premiere. They really do. You get filled in very quickly where everybody is.

Season 4 has been described as the "Year of Abby." Can you elaborate on that?

I think it's something Shonda alluded to. I'm really excited about that unfolding because Abby and Olivia have such a special relationship and such an interesting, complicated past, and I'm dying to know more about it. Also, I'm just excited about it because Darby Stanchfield is such a phenomenally talented actress, so I'm excited to get to see her just play more and explore her character on screen.

It seems as the seasons go by, different characters are getting their time in the spotlight. Last year, there was a lot of Mellie. Is that something you enjoy?
I really think of our show as an ensemble show and I love when that happens. One of my favorite episodes last year was the episode where you got the whole backstory with Cyrus and James and their whole love story unfolding in the episode that James died in. I just thought that was such a beautiful, beautiful episode and a beautiful telling of a love story between two men. And all of the backstory with Mellie was phenomenal. Bellamy [Young] is such a tremendous actress and all of that stuff with her and the dad... oh, it was just amazing. I love when we get windows into the characters' past.

You really sound like a big Scandal geek!
That's how I feel! I'm such a fan of the people that I work with and our writers.

Whenever you go to the Emmys or other industry events, have you had any actors come up to you and say, "I'd love to be on the show"?
Hmmm, yeah, I have. I'm trying to think of who. Our casting director, Linda Lowy, is so amazing. I always say in interviews that Joe Morton is the very first guest star that I ever called home about because I've been a fan of his and he's such a hero of mine, in theater and as an actor. I literally called my parents when he walked into our table read.

We have another guest star in this episode that we're shooting [Episode 5], that is my... I had to call my mother immediately. I can't say who it is. But she is just an icon. I'm so excited.

Let's talk about fashion, which is such a major part of the show. Will there be any changes to Olivia's look this year?
In my first sitting, I was like, "Wow, I can wear a coat and put a belt around my waist!" You'll be able to see Olivia's waist a bit more this season, for sure.

No hiding behind giant purses anymore!
Yeah, actually, real fans of our show and fans who love the fashion in our show will notice that we made a really fun decision in the premiere episode about Olivia and her purses. It's a very fun choice that we made. For just the premiere episode.

You also collaborated on a Scandal-inspired clothing line for The Limited.
It's very exciting. It's a collaboration between myself; Lyn Paolo, our costume designer; and Elliot Staples, the head designer at The Limited and also a major Gladiator and huge fan of the show. So the three of us got together and worked very hard on this line and we're very, very proud of it.

Did you get any feedback from fans about the line?
That's what made us want to do this — fans of the show are so vocal about the fashion. We wanted to make the feel of the show accessible on a budget that's affordable. People come up to me and say, "Oh, I wish I could afford Olivia's closet," and I say, "Me too!" It's great to be able to do it, to create that Olivia Pope feel and look of the show at a budget that a lot more people can afford.

[Related: Dress Like Olivia Pope With the 'Scandal' Clothing Line]

The entire Scandal cast, including yourself, are all on Twitter and you're live-tweeting every week. Is that energizing or overwhelming?
Both! Sometimes, it's overwhelming how quickly it moves. When we write on Friday mornings about having a Scandal hangover, we literally sometimes have Scandal hangovers because you're typing and reading so, so quickly.

Last season of Scandal was filled with so much crazy drama. How will you top yourselves this year?
They're always pushing themselves. It's intense already. We've already had shocks at the reading table. We're off to a good start for sure.

Season 3 was dark. Does that mean Season 4 will be even darker?
It's hard to tell so early in the season. I'll say the stakes are still very high, so very high.

Scandal Season 4 premieres Thursday at 9 p.m. on ABC.