Kerry Washington Calls On Women to Support Each Other: It's Going to Take 'Courage'
Kerry Washington is all about building up other women.
Following Saturday's powerful speech at the Los Angeles Women's March, the 39-year-old actress once again spoke out about the importance of supporting women at the Sundance Film Festival's annual Women in Film Brunch on Monday.
WATCH: Kerry Washington Talks Her Newborn Baby Boy, Return of 'Scandal': 'It's Worth the Wait'
"Sometimes the people who are in charge of those rooms, they want us to feel lucky to be in the room. And we are because we're all really blessed to be doing what we do...but that doesn't mean that I don't get to bring other people with me," Washington said.
"A woman who shouts out other women? That's just something we all have to do," she shared, declaring that making progress and creating opportunities for women will take "courage on all of our parts."
"Being alone in the room is exhausting," Washington added. "You feel like you have to stand up for the entire gender or race."
The mother of two may be "exhausted," but she's doing her best to lead the charge, saying that serving as a producer on projects like HBO's Confirmation has made it a priority for her to hire other women, minorities and people of the LGBTQ community, both on-camera and behind-the-scenes.
"[It's] making sure people in society who we've labeled as other have a seat at the table," she explained, before questioning Hollywood's idea that it's a "risk" to make movies for and about women and people of color.
"Why do we allow this myth of risk to remain?" she asked. "And if it doesn't work, who cares? So many movies don't work."
While Washington works to create more opportunities for other women in the entertainment industry, she's also getting back into the swing of things following her maternity leave.
Find out how motherhood has changed Washington's approach to her Scandal character, Olivia Pope, in the video below.