President Grace Penn (Allison Janney) has had quite the journey since she first appeared in Debora Cahn’s drama The Diplomat. She begins as vice president, makes big moves behind her president’s back, and ends up in the top seat herself when the president unexpectedly dies. By the close of Season 4 (now streaming), she has covertly stolen a nuclear weapon, survived an assassination attempt, forged a path toward war with a close ally, and received resignations from several of her staff.
“It’s a wild season,” says Janney, who won an Emmy Award for her Season 3 portrayal of the prickly Grace Penn. Grace starts Season 4 confronting the consequences of her decision, made with Vice President Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell), to seize a Russian nuke without telling the UK government or her ambassador to the UK and second lady, Kate Wyler (Keri Russell). “Those are the decisions Grace loves to make, the ones that may seem awful but in the end are protecting the world,” Janney says. “She feels that’s the way to handle this, because the weapon in anybody else’s hands could mean war.”
In Season 4, Episode 1, Grace faces a new crisis when she’s shot on British soil. “She’s made vulnerable in a way I don’t think she’s ever been before,” Janney says. “It changes her in huge ways that I don’t think she’s even aware of.” Those changes affect her relationships with the Wylers and with her husband, Todd (Bradley Whitford), as she manages the physical and psychological toll of the attack. “I don’t think Grace has ever questioned her instincts,” Janney says. “She starts to doubt herself but doesn’t want to show it, so she doubles down and makes decisions that scare everybody else and make them doubt that she’s OK.”
Here, the eight-time Emmy Award–winning actor digs into Grace’s journey on The Diplomat and the shocking beginning and end of Season 4.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
How has Grace evolved from Season 2 to the end of Season 4, with her very quick ascension to power?
Allison Janney: It’s quite an unexpected way to become the president of the United States. She’s literally thrown into the role and is very capable of fulfilling it, but it’s not the best way to become president. She wants to make her mark and prove that, as a woman, she’s going to rise to the occasion, because everyone will be underestimating her. You see presidents’ hair go completely white [from stress] during their time in office. Thank God Grace can dye her hair.
It’s a huge transformation and a huge jolt to her marriage, and she’s trying to hold on to power and show that she’s worthy of being in this position. There’s so much going on with her. There are so many secrets she’s sitting on, so many dark things, and she’s got to not show any chinks in the armor. It’s a huge role to undertake, and it’s so much fun to play her, knowing all the different things that are going on. It’s a lot of fun to figure Grace out and be with her on this crazy journey.
Episode 1 ends on such a shocking note. What was it like to film the scene in which Grace Penn is shot?
Janney: This is what Alex Graves does so well. He’s such a brilliant director. I think Debora wrote this scene for him to film, because he loves to have all these different elements: the guards, and the Secret Service, and people scrambling. It was really exciting. There were lots of stunt people there, and we had our doubles to show what it was going to look like and what we’d do.
It was terrifying for me because I couldn’t see what was going on, mostly because I was covered by Secret Service people. I could feel it, and it was really electrifying. I can’t wait to see the scene, because I was on the ground for most of it. It’s like the scene when I became president, with all the Secret Service racing down that big lawn. Those kinds of sweeping scenes are just what this show does so well.
Grace’s recovery is physical, but she also goes somewhere psychologically new. How did you work through how that trauma would manifest, and how does it shape her arc this season?
Janney: It hugely impacted her. Grace is a woman who feels pretty strong in her power and her instincts and feels pretty invincible, and being shot puts her in a whole different place. She’s been attacked personally, and I think it makes her feel incredibly vulnerable. She fights against wanting to feel that way, even when they’re rolling her in to operate before they give her any painkillers. She’s like, “Are we at war?” She’s still trying to control the presidency in this very vulnerable state.
It also has a big impact on her marriage to Todd. Why does she struggle to let him get close?
Janney: I don’t think she thinks she can afford to be vulnerable. Todd is someone who can see that part of her, and she feels that she can’t afford to give in to it, even with him. Todd increasingly feels that he doesn’t have a way into her and doesn’t know how to reach her. She’s become less nuanced since the shooting. It’s heartbreaking to watch what happens with them and what happens with her. It’s a huge shift that everyone notices, and no one knows how to reach her anymore. It definitely affects their marriage.
It also raises the stakes between Kate and Grace. You and Keri Russell have built such an interesting dynamic onscreen. What do you relish about sharing scenes with her?
Janney: First of all, I adore her. She’s a really lovely, fun human being, and we have a similar work ethic. The dynamic constantly shifts with [Grace and Kate], and whatever the challenge is, it’s fun to do it with Keri. Kate’s like a mosquito around my head, and I just keep swatting at her to go away, but then I kind of need her. She’s a necessary evil. I know how smart and valuable she is, but I also know she’s dangerous to me from the first meeting. She considers [Grace] a terrorist at the beginning of our relationship. She’s a dangerous person to Grace, so Grace keeps her close.
Season 4 begins with Grace getting shot and ends with her team handing in their resignations at the G7. What do you make of this season?
Janney: The G7 was the craziest thing to film, in that gorgeous place, and I’m saying this unbelievable thing. It was so shocking. I get chills thinking about it. Where do you go from this? That’s a crazy trajectory. I don’t think Debora would argue with it.
How do you think Grace is feeling in that final scene?
Janney: It’s very lonely at the top, and I think especially this season, it’s extremely lonely and scary for Grace. At that moment, I felt like I was by myself. I looked to Todd and thought he was definitely going to be there with me. It was very emotional. It was hard to watch them do that, knowing they were doing the right thing, but Grace is so infuriated and just tries to brush it aside: “This means nothing. Keep going. These are just sick people.” She’s going to spin it that way.
I can’t wait to see what Hal says to the press. I thought, “Is he going to be on my side? What is he going to say?” That’s a hell of a cliffhanger, right?
Stream all four seasons of The Diplomat now.
