‘The Diplomat’ Creator on Why Allison Janney’s Grace Character Isn’t a Season 2 Villain
That major twist in The Diplomat Season 2 finale doesn’t mean Grace Penn is a “bad guy.” At least not according to the TV show’s creator. The U.S. vice president, played by guest star Allison Janney, would have viewers thinking they too “would have made the same decision in that situation.”
[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers from The Diplomat Season 2.]
Grace’s role in the attack on ‘The Diplomat’
Kate Wyler (Keri Russell), the U.S. ambassador to the U.K., finally got answers in The Diplomat Season 2. After the attack on a British ship in the series premiere that suddenly had her across the pond in a new job, she learned that Grace had been involved. Not just involved, but—gasp—she ordered the hit.
Grace explained herself in the finale. Her reasoning? Dominoes would’ve fallen leading to something even bigger. If the British people hadn’t come together in the wake of the national tragedy, and Scotland would’ve gone through with their bid for independence, the U.K. base housing nuclear submarines keeping Russia from nuking the United States would’ve closed.
In turn, even more people would’ve been in danger. So Grace quietly went about preventing nuclear war, telling only a select few she turned to for help.
The news, which Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell) delivered to President Rayburn (Michael McKean), was so upsetting to the country’s commander in chief that Rayburn died. That means, in yet another twist, Grace became president in the episode’s final moments.
Grace is doing her ‘best’ and not a ‘bad guy,’ according to ‘The Diplomat’ creator
The show’s creator, Debora Cahn, explained to Variety that Grace’s involvement in the attack doesn’t make her an evil villain. Rather, she’s someone who is “doing their best,” an angle Cahn likes to explore.
“I think that there are objectively bad people out there, and I’m prepared to [call them out]. But I don’t want to write about them,” Cahn said. “I feel like it’s been done. Just like I don’t want to write about infidelity—that’s been done! We’ve seen the movie, we’ve watched the TV show—the stories about evil leaders and corrupt, venal heads of state, all of that exists. To me, it feels a little bit like a cop-out.”
Instead, she likes to put “good” people in complex situations without a clear hero and villain. “What if they’re all good,” Cahn said. “And they all have good values and they’re all doing their best for their country, and we’re still in the motherf***ing s**tshow that we’re in now? What if this is what you get when the good people are doing their best work?”
“I believe that actually is what happens,” she continued. “I don’t think it happens because the bad people got the big jobs—I just think it’s really hard to get it right.”
“So the hope with the Allison Janney story was, yes, you go into it, and you believe that she’s the bad guy,” Cahn added. “And then hopefully you learn that you would have made the same decision in that situation.”
‘The Diplomat’ Season 2 ending gave Allison Janney ‘chills’
The finale twist wasn’t just a jaw-dropping moment for fans of The Diplomat. It was also a big moment for the cast including Janney. Speaking to Vanity Fair ahead of season 2’s premiere, The West Wing alum recalled how she reacted to the big reveal about Grace’s involvement.
“I got chills and I threw the script across the room and I was like, ‘What the f**k?’” she said. “It was the best moment I’ve ever had reading a script.” As for whether or not Janney will reprise her role in The Diplomat Season 3 (production is already underway), it’s expected but not officially confirmed.
Upcoming episodes will be “so good” according to Russell. “I’ve already read everything of season 3,” The Diplomat star told Rolling Stone. “It’s so good in the way I want things to be good, and I just can’t believe that it’s still getting better.”
Watch The Diplomat Seasons 1-2 on Netflix.
