Kate Wyler’s (Keri Russell) work overseas isn’t letting up. The Diplomat is coming back for a third season and, by the looks of it, things are about to get a lot more complicated as Bradley Whitford (The West Wing, The Handmaid’s Tale) joins the cast.

“Season 3 flips the chessboard,” creator, showrunner, and executive producer Debora Cahn tells Tudum. “In Season 3, Kate lives the particular nightmare that is getting what you want.”

Production on the new season is well underway in London and New York. “We’re shooting some stuff already in Season 3 that involves big groups and lots of people, and we do tend to rehearse those [scenes],” Russell said during a November episode of Netflix’s Skip Intro podcast. “It’s such rapid-fire diplomatic speak that we make sure that everyone’s on the same page and knows what we’re actually talking about.”

While you wait for new episodes to arrive, read on for all the intel on what’s to come, including major casting announcements.

What happens in Season 2 of The Diplomat?

In The Diplomat’s second season, Kate’s worst fears unfold when she realizes that the Season 1 attack on a British naval ship didn’t stem from a rival nation — it came from inside the British government.

After learning that Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear)’s former adviser Margaret “Meg” Roylin (Celia Imrie) is the Brit involved, she makes another shocking discovery: Vice President Grace Penn (Allison Janney) was involved in the attack.

Penn wanted to squash Scotland’s efforts to break free from the UK. If Scotland gained independence, it would have led to the closure of Creegan, a nuclear-submarine base in Scotland that serves both the US and the UK.

That all comes to a head in the season finale. Instead of telling US Secretary of State Miguel Ganon (Miguel Sandoval) what Penn did, Kate’s diplomat husband, Hal (Rufus Sewell), calls President Rayburn (Michael McKean) directly, and the commander in chief does not handle the news well. As Kate and the vice president debate whether Kate would have done the same thing, Hal breaks the news that President Rayburn has died — and Penn is now president.

Who’s in The Diplomat Season 3  cast?

Another West Wing alum joins the ensemble for Season 3. Bradley Whitford is set to play President Grace Penn’s husband, Todd Penn, reuniting the actor with his former West Wing co-star Janney.

“Brad was the fantasy version of Todd — for all of us,” Cahn tells Tudum. “We still can’t believe it came true.”

Executive producer Janice Williams adds, “Bradley was the perfect addition to what is already a dream cast.”

The returning cast includes:

Keri Russell as diplomat Kate Wyler
Rufus Sewell as diplomat Hal Wyler
David Gyasi as British Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison
Ali Ahn as CIA Station Chief Eidra Park
Ato Essandoh as Deputy Chief of Mission Stuart Hayford
Allison Janney as President Grace Penn
Rory Kinnear as British Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge

1 / 3

See The Diplomat Season 3 First-Look PhotosThe Diplomat Season 3 will return with even more political intrigue for stars Keri Russell and Rufus Sewell.

Can I see some photos from Season 3?

Yup! Check out a first look at Whitford as Todd Penn from the new season in the above photos.

Stream Seasons 1 and 2 of The Diplomat now. 

[man] The vice president
is on her way to London.

Meet Allison Janney as Vice President Grace Penn in The Diplomat Season 2