'Scandal': Katie Lowes on Quinn's next step

Last week’s episode of Scandal ended on a note that Katie Lowes did not see coming. In the final minutes of the episode, amid a minefield of OMG moments, Charlie walked up to Quinn in an alley and said after being caught on a surveillance camera killing a guard, she was now under the control of B613. Or, in fewer words: “Welcome to Wonderland.”

What’s in store for Quinn now? Lowes fills us in below.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: First of all, I have to start with the Charlie-Quinn of it all. Do you think Charlie’s first kiss was manipulation? Or real feelings?

KATIE LOWES: I think that it is a total manipulation — at first. I really do. I think he knows that it’s a weak spot for her; I think he knows she hasn’t had any type of personal life in a long time. Rowan and Charlie, as characters, I think they kind of know everything that is going on at Olivia Pope and Associates. I think they’ve done their research on Quinn, and they know it’s a weakness for her. So I think it’s a manipulation at first. But I do think that the car scene we saw last week — where they are sitting there on this weird, awkward date stalking this security guard — I saw in George Newbern’s performance a little bit of conflict. We were asking the director a lot of questions while filming, ‘How does he feel about her?’ I think these are two people who have some similarities there. Maybe in a different world, on a different planet, maybe there could be something other than that, but at the moment ,it’s all about the higher powers that be and getting the job done.

That did feel like a very loaded scene.

It was very layered. I watched the scene ,and I almost feel like he paused before he let me take the needle. ‘Should I let this girl do this? Maybe I should try to help her.’ So I wonder if Charlie has a conscience. These characters are so complicated and multilayered….I did see this flicker of morality in there and this flicker of, ‘does he have feelings for Quinn?’ And all I can say in the spoiler sense is stay tuned. The episode last week laid a lot of ground work for so many things that you will see unfold.

Preview Quinn’s reaction for me.

I can’t really tease anything other than she probably feels every curse word in the book. Because I think where we last left off in the end of the episode was, ‘Welcome to Wonderland.’ And I think this is not good. Quinn’s hugest concern is Quinn’s a very loyal character. Quinn’s loyalties are to Huck and Olivia always. At the end of the day, without Huck, she doesn’t have a home or a sense of purpose. Without Huck, I don’t think she knows 100 percent who she is. So to kind of mess up and get involved with Charlie and B613, this is a betrayal to him. I think she’s not in a good headspace when we come back to her….I have to say, anything you could possibly imagine happening is not what happens.

I hear episode 10 is a biggie.

It’s a hugey. Episode 7 is laying all this groundwork for all of these things that will be uncovered. If 7 was laying down all the tracks, then 9 and 10 are where the train just flies off of them.

And then explodes.

Exactly right.