The Diplomat will plumb the cast of The West Wing yet again in the upcoming season 3. The West Wing is a political drama series that was created by Aaron Sorkin and ran on NBC for seven seasons between 1999 and 2006. The show, which followed the lives of a group of presidential advisers in Washington, D.C., featured a vast ensemble of performers, with some of the longest-running stars being Rob Lowe, Richard Schiff, John Spencer, Martin Sheen, Dulé Hill, Janel Moloney, and Stockard Channing.

 A closeup of Allison Janney as Vice President Grace Penn in The Diplomat Season 2

The Diplomat, which premiered on Netflix in 2023, takes after The West Wing by being a soapy political drama. However, there are some major differences in the show, which stars Keri Russell, Rufus Sewell, David Gyasi, Ali Ahn, and Rory Kinnear. This includes it being set in the United Kingdom, as it follows the political intrigue involving a United States ambassador. The upcoming Diplomat season 3 was renewed in October 2024, nearly a full month before the premiere of season 2, showing that the new series may ultimately have a similar level of longevity to The West Wing.

Bradley Whitford Is Joining The Diplomat

He Was One Of The West Wing’s Longest-Running Stars

Janel Moloney, Bradley Whitford, and Rob Lowe as Donna, Josh, and Sam standing together in The West Wing

Another West Wing alumnus, Bradley Whitford, is joining the Diplomat cast in season 3. Previously, Academy Award winner Allison Janney – who played press secretary C. J. Cregg in all seven seasons of The West Wing – joined the cast of the Netflix drama as the flinty United States Vice President Grace Penn in season 2. Although Janney’s role was recurring and she only appeared in two episodes, the character will most likely return in season 3.

Allison Janney first appeared as Grace Penn in season 2’s penultimate episode, “Our Lady of Immaculate Deception,” returning in “Dreadnought,” which was the finale of the six-episode season.

Per Variety, The West Wing star Bradley Whitford has now boarded The Diplomat season 3. He is set to play the husband of Grace Penn, which almost certainly means that there will be an onscreen reunion for the two former co-stars. Whitford was also a mainstay of The West Wing, playing Josh Lyman, Leo McGarry’s (John Spencer) deputy chief of staff (and later the White House Chief of Staff), in all seven seasons of the Aaron Sorkin drama.

Our Take On Bradley Whitford Joining The Diplomat

It Could Propel An Exciting Season

Moira Kelly as Mandy Hampton and Bradley Whitford as Josh Lyman standing together in The West Wing

Season 3 has big shoes to fill, following as it does after the explosive ending of The Diplomat season 2. However, this probable reunion between two of the major players of The West Wing could help fuel audience interest as it attempts to tell a bigger and better story. The show has already proven that it knows how to give alumni of the previous political show meaty roles, so the dynamic the two stars crafted on the Sorkin drama could be resurrected by their reunion, even though their new characters are very different.