Grace and Todd Penn looking intrigued in The Diplomat season 3
Warning: SPOILERS lie ahead for The Diplomat season 3!Kate Wyler's life is in a harrowing new spot after getting deeper in bed with the Penns in The Diplomat season 3, building towards higher stakes in season 4.
Led by Keri Russell, the Netflix political thriller centers on Kate in her position as the United States ambassador to the United Kingdom, navigating various international crises. The Diplomat season 3 saw Kate rocked as Allison Janney's Grace Penn, whom she discovered committed treason, became President of the United States. After struggles with embracing the new President and separating from Hal as he accepted the Vice President position, The Diplomat season 3 ended with another big cliffhanger as Kate came to realize that Hal has used her again and is quietly working with Penn for a nuclear weapon. Prior to the new season's release, it was also confirmed that season 4 was already in the works, with Janney promoted to a series regular role alongside Bradley Whitford, who stars as First Gentleman Todd Penn. In honor of the show's return, ScreenRant's Liam Crowley interviewed Debora Cahn, Keri Russell, Allison Janney and Bradley Whitford to discuss The Diplomat season 3. When asked about the latter two stars' expanded season 4 roles, Cahn pointed to there being a more practical reason for it, feeling someone with the star power of Janney needs more than one episode for a show: If you want to work with Allison Janney for one episode, you need her as a series regular, because otherwise she's gone. These people are gone, gone, gone. We were just like,"We want as much of this as we can have." And the way to do that is just bring them in and make them part of the show as much as possible. Make them part of the family. As for Janney and Whitford, however, they admit they "have no idea" what's coming for the Penns in season 4. While the latter praised getting to work with"great writers" on the Netflix series, the former went on to point out that Cahn"has all the secrets in her mind", and that they"haven't even read" the Diplomat season 4's premiere, despite Russell telling us that production would begin in four weeks from the interview: Janney: We don't know what's going to happen, but there's going to be more complicated relationships between countries and between people. That's the heart of the show. What Else We Learned About The Diplomat Season 3 From The Group ScreenRant: Every season of The Diplomat ends with a massive cliffhanger, and the last season we lost our President of the United States. Going into this new season, how is Kate handling the change of power that's happening? Does she blame Hal for his role in what happens? Keri Russell: She always blames Hal. Hal is always to be blamed! I don't care if he's innocent, he's done something wrong.Keri Russell: It's Hal. Yes, exactly. This season is no different. I love that we pick up exactly where it left off, especially the first episode. It just moves. It's really exciting, it's fun, it's thrilling. I love the way the first episode ends too; it changes everything. ScreenRant: Debora, now that Grace has been appointed to the President of the United States by tragedy and not by traditional election, how do her relationships with the various characters involved shift? Debora Cahn: It just flips everything over. It just takes the chessboard and just flips it, and everybody goes flying. Really, the status in every relationship changes. That's exciting. It's exciting to see a bunch of people who thought they knew where they were on Earth trying to find their feet and trying to figure out how to deal with each other. That instability is, I think, what we all like to watch. ScreenRant: You guys are a married couple in this show, and you have a little bit of new responsibility going into this season. Grace, you've been appointed POTUS, and Bradley, you are our First Lady. There's a little bit of sarcasm when he says that. How does he feel about his role as the First Gentleman in the series? Bradley Whitford: I think his gyroscope has been flicked. I think he was not fully prepared for this sudden dramatic change in circumstances. I think it's a switch, even though she was Vice President in the power dynamic, and I think he's struggling with it. ScreenRant: With Grace assuming the role of President of the United States after a tragedy, can you speak to how the trust she has with her people gets shaken up in season 3? Allison Janney: Right before this event happens, Kate Wyler accuses Grace of being a traitor and also tells her that she wants her job. Right away, there are trust issues between Grace and Kate that start season 3 off. Grace is thrown into this role, not at all the way she thought it would happen — as most things in life happen. You just didn't see that coming, and it's a huge thing for her to step in. As a woman, she's always underestimated, and I think the decisions that she's made are under higher scrutiny than they would be if she were a man. Hal Wyler even says,"I'd make the same decision that you made." So, there's a lot on her plate. It's enormous pressure. She's got to make brutal choices, but she's up for the task. I truly think, out of anyone, her ambitious nature makes her ready for this. It's a lot of fun watching the dynamic of what she has to do politically, and what she has to do personally with her husband. It's pretty funny watching their dynamic develop over the season. ScreenRant: Bradley, who would you say which government is more dysfunctional: the Penn administration or the Republic of Gilead? Bradley Whitford: Gilead, unfortunately, seemed to be a little more organized. That's the problem with fascism, if you let it grow...I think the Penns are glorious and chaotic in the way an administration and a democracy should be. There's a free exchange of ideas. 69 9.2/10 7/10 The Diplomat 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-MA Drama War & Politics Thriller Release Date April 20, 2023 Network Netflix Showrunner Debora Cahn Directors Alex Graves, Andrew Bernstein, Simon Cellan Jones, Tucker Gates Writers Peter Noah 6 Images Close Cast See All The Diplomat follows a career diplomat who, amid an international crisis, is thrust into a high-profile role she is ill-prepared for, creating significant challenges for both her marital and political aspirations. Main Genre Drama Creator Debora Cahn Executive Producer Janice Williams, Keri Russell, Debora Cahn Producers Daniel Toland, Russ Hammonds, Brad Carpenter, Chris Arruda Seasons 3 Streaming Service Netflix Powered by Expand Collapse
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