[Bradley Whitford] It's kind of funny for us to be marital.
[Allison Janney] Very.
[Bradley Whitford] Such an incredible compliment. She said that kissing me is like kissing her brother.
[intense string music playing]
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] What happened?
[Allison Janney] Shooting the first scene, it was strange to think that we had shot it, I don't know how long ago, and we were picking up right in the same moment. But it was really exciting.
[CLIP] Ma'am, President Rayburn died four minutes ago.
[Bradley Whitford] One of the great things about the parts that we've been able to play on long-running television shows is that you're discovering it as it goes, as opposed to with a movie, where you sort of have all the information. And part of the joy is how it develops.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] I swim 50 laps, twice a day.
[CLIP] [Keri Russell as Katie Wyler] Mm.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] Helps dissipate that choking feeling you get when the epicenter of the world's a foot and a half away, and you still can't get there.
[Bradley Whitford] One thing that I love about this show is the political plot. All of this sort of diplomacy, it's always just amplified and resonating with what is going on personally. And that's really fun.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] Give me the knife.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] I don't have it.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] Yes, you do.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] I don't have it. I do not have the knife.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] For ****'s sake, stand still and turn your body toward me.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] Oh.
[Allison Janney] For me, having the character of Todd come on, you get to see the private-facing Grace, not the public-facing Grace. And that's an interesting dynamic to see in their relationship, which is so great that it's Brad, because we have such a relationship already, and we have years together. There was one scene that Deborah wrote that had no dialogue at all, and we just behave, just as a couple. And it's just such a beautiful scene that explained what their life was.
[CLIP] [Todd clears throat]
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] Are we having fun?
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] [chuckles]
[Allison Janney] The scene when I have to choose who my vice president is going to be, it was such a great scene. I call them both into my office, and everyone assumes I'm gonna pick Kate to be my vice president.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] This is going to be a pain point, and I apologize for that. I know it's complicated. Hal, I'd like you to be my vice president.
[Allison Janney] Kate absolutely thought she was gonna be vice president. I know that was a huge moment between them. So there's that, which causes problems. And then later on, my relationship with Hal causes problems in my relationship with Todd. So it resonates into everybody's lives.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] [sighs] I look like a maître d'.
[Allison Janney] I don't think Kate is as much a threat to Grace in this season. I think she finds her helpful. I think she finds that she has more of a kinship with Hal. And I think Grace finds that Hal likes to work in the same way she does. Like…
[Bradley Whitford] Jesus Christ.
[CLIP] [Rufus Sewell as Hal Wyler] Our relationship would be better if I blew more smoke up your ***, but I'm not going to because it ******* matters.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] I get it.
[Bradley Whitford] You know, I've felt at moments in my life in relationships that threat that someone is being taken away, where you're watching someone who you're deeply in love with sort of fulfilled and titillated by someone else. And especially when you are in a position, like Todd is, of having to be suddenly sidelined and have sort of no sense of usefulness in your own life.
[CLIP] [Keri Russell as Kate Wyler] I'm just gonna check in with the crew really quick.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] They don't want you. They'd ask.
[Bradley Whitford] It's a very tricky position to be in that God knows women have been in for a long time. So it's really fun to have a man go through it.
[CLIP] [Allison Janney as Grace Penn] [softly] Holy ****.
[CLIP] [Bradley Whitford as Todd Penn] [softly] Holy ****.
[music fades]