Scandal Casts Olivia’s Mom: Khandi Alexander to Play the Part

I sure hope you’ve caught up on Scandal, Gladiators.  Otherwise you’ve probably already been spoiled.

After last week’s twist, Khandi Alexander (Treme, CSI: Miami) has been announced to be playing the recurring role of Maya Lewis, Olivia Pope’s late mother.  She will begin appearing in flashbacks starting this week’s episode (November 7th), according to The Hollywood Reporter.

On last week’s episode of Scandal, Huck (Guillermo Diaz) and Jake (Scott Foley) uncovered the mystery…or part of it, behind Operation Remington and President Fitzgerald Grant’s (Tony Goldwyn) involvement.  While in service, and under orders from Olivia’s father, he shot down a civilian airliner carrying more than 300 passengers, Olivia’s mother being one of them.

Cue, the upcoming unraveling of this story thread with Alexander’s casting, and hopefully some insight into her life…and death, Olivia’s family past, and more about the mysterious B613.

Alexander currently stars in HBO’s Treme, which begins its fourth and final season on December 1st.