Kerry Washington plays Natalie Certain in Cars 3. Photos / AP, Disney Pixar
Kerry Washington plays Natalie Certain in Cars 3. Photos / AP, Disney Pixar
Kerry Washington is not an actor you'd expect to see portraying a cartoon car in a Disney movie.
The Scandal star has been critically lauded for her dramatic performances in films like Ray, Confirmation, The Last King of Scotland and Django Unchained.
She's an outspoken activist for women, the LGBT+ community, and people of colour. She's been nominated for multiple Golden Globes, Emmys and BET Awards, and her role as Olivia Pope in Scandal made her the first African-American actress to lead an American network drama series since 1995.
Kerry Washington. Photo / AP
So how did she end up in Disney Pixar's upcoming Cars 3?
"I'm a huge Disney fan," she exclaims. "I love everything Disney does and everything Disney Pixar - all the people that know me best know that this is my wheelhouse, this is my sweet spot."
She's even excited that her hit political drama Scandal airs on ABC - because it's owned by Disney.
"People always say, 'Oh, did you do this movie now because you're a mum and you have kids?' And I'm like, no, I did this movie because I'm a big kid and I've loved it for 11 years since it first came out," she laughs.
Washington plays Natalie Certain, a statistician who tries to come up with a winning formula for the film's racers.
Kerry Washington's Cars 3 character Natalie Certain. Photo / Disney Pixar
"I love that she's a girl and she's a statistician because it's just great for kids to see that this girl is so interested in science and technology and maths because I know it's something that we really are trying to stress for our girls," she says.
"But also I do think it's really fun that she's like a smarty-pants, know-it-all, bossy character, and then she's wrong. I love that she's wrong, I love that there are certain things in life that you can't measure, things that are not quantitative like passion and heart and courage and those things are as important to the equation of what makes a champion."
It might be a Disney kids' movie, but Cars 3 is about as full of political and social messages as any of Washington's other films.
There are "so many girl power messages" in the film, and as well as that, messages about technology, unity and acceptance.
"Natalie represents a part of society that I think is important that we look at - this kind of disposable nature of society where we feel like we want to value what's new and shiny and exciting over the tried and true veterans of our culture who have wisdom and experience to offer.
"I love that one of the messages in the film is that it's not about new versus old but it's actually when you come together and you're able to unite with people who may not look like you, people who are different...that's when you build a winning team."
The film is out next week and Washington is hopeful it could lead to a reappearance of Natalie Certain in future films saying: "I would love, love, love to be a part of it going forward".
Until then though, she's got the final season of Scandal to focus on, saying: "We've been groundbreaking from the very beginning and I think we're going to try to be all the way until the end and I'm excited about that, to try to enjoy this final lap around the track as Olivia Pope and give her all that she deserves until the end."
Kerry Washington with the cast of ABC's Scandal. Photo / Supplied
