Shondaland is With Hillary

The leading ladies of Shonda Rhimes’ three current hit shows–“Grey’s Anatomy,” “Scandal,” and “How to Get Away with Murder” are starring in an ad for the Hillary Clinton campaign. The spot is called “Real Life,” and will air in the states that have March 15 primaries.

Check out the spot here:

It stars Shonda Rhimes herself, whose shows dominate ABC’s Thursday night lineup. Also in the spot are Ellen Pompeo, the star of “Grey’s Anatomy,” Kerry Washington, the star of “Scandal,” and Viola Davis, the star of “How to Get Away with Murder.” The ad was directed by Tony Goldwyn, who also stars on “Scandal” as President Fitzgerald Grant.

The ad makes a direct reference to the fact that strong, independent women are a strong theme throughout Rhimes’ shows–Pompeo, Washington, and Davis’s characters all certainly fit that bill. They refer to Hillary Clinton as a real life version of the “brilliant, complex, overqualified, get-it-done woman” they play on TV. In the ad, the three women state:

Our characters are on television. … But the real world has Hillary Clinton — a bonafide rolls-up-her-sleeves, fights-for-what’s-right, in-it-for-you, won’t-back-down, champion for us all

There are other parallels between Rhimes’ shows and Clinton’s campaign. For example (“Scandal” spoiler alert) the first lady on the show, Mellie Grant, goes on to become a Senator and run a presidential campaign.

It’s not really a surprise that the stars of Shondaland are supporting Clinton. Shonda Rhimes has been endorsing Clinton for a while–in fact, she joined with a number of other feminist female celebrities in a separate spot back in February. The video also included Jamie Lee Curtis, Lena Dunham, Amber Tamblyn, Rosie O’Donnell, Amy Poehler, Jemima Kirke, Katy Perry, Retta, Gina Rodriguez, Mary Steenburgen, Tracy Anderson, Constance Wu, Zoe Kazan, Shannon Woodward, Katie Lowes and Uzo Aduba. The women all explained “why I’m with her.”

The next big contest between Hillary Clinton and fellow Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders will be on March 15, when Florida, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio all take to the polls to case their votes. We’ll see if the Shondaland endorsement has any affect on the turnout.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.