Trump supporters are welcome to watch and engage with Shondaland, but Shonda Rhimes says her universe of ABC shows won’t miss their viewership. In a New York Times roundtable of TV writers and showrunners of political comedies and dramas, Rhimes said she doesn’t feel a particular need to pander to the opinions of the president’s supporters, even though many of Scandal’s politicians identify as Republicans. When asked whether she feels a new duty to communicate with Trump supporters through her most political show, Rhimes dismissed the idea that she should feel responsible to reach out to or reflect Trump’s voters:
I get really offended at the concept that what came out of the election was that — how do I say this? — impoverished people who are not of color needed more attention. I thought that was kind of crazy, that they might need more television. They have television. [Laughter] It just felt very strange to me. And I thought really, the people who really need to be spoken to are the 50 percent [ed note: 45 percent of people did not vote, according to CNN] of the population that did not vote at all. Those are the people who need to be more engaged.
Also during her talk with the Times, Rhimes reminded the panel that some Trump supporters might not engage with her show at all already based on her own personal politics:
The Shondaland audience that watches all the shows [which include Grey’s Anatomy and How to Get Away With Murder]? I don’t think any of them are [Trump supporters], because I’m a black, Planned Parenthood-loving, liberal feminist. I really don’t think there’s a ton of Trump supporters standing behind that.
Scandal’s gladiators have a full schedule handling B613, anyway — they don’t have time to make nice with Trump’s supporters.