It’s been a pretty manic couple of years for Kerry Washington. She played the damsel in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained - the highest grossing Tarantino film and winner of multiple awards – and now has a lead in Scandal, ABC’s latest political thriller.

“I’m the luckiest broad in Hollywood now,” the Django Unchained star told Elle magazine during a raunchy but tasteful photoshoot. “To be the lead actor on Scandal and to be in the highest-earning Tarantino movie- I don’t get to ask for more.” While Washington’s star has certainly risen recently, she’s a seasoned actress, with roles in films like Save the Last Dance, Ray and The Last King of Scotland. It could have all been so different if she’d chosen another of her preferred paths, though. “I imagined I’d be a clinical psychologist, with a focus on how performance shapes identity,” she explained. “I’d figure out ways to use role-playing in the healing of people.”

Having been a star for a while, but getting headline space due to her recent explots, there’s been a certain learning curve for the 34-year-old. “I found out I enjoy the process,' she told Elle about getting ready for the red carpet. “All these people show up at my house, they all have kits, someone has dresses. And it’s like, Let’s have fun. It’s not all about me. We’re able to create stories on the red carpet."

Kerry WashingtonKerry Washington cracks a smile for the paps