has found her peace in privacy. The actress, 47, opened up to Bustle about what led her to keeping her family out of the spotlight .
Washington and husband began dating in 2009 after Washington had endured a very public split from ex-fiance in 2007 after years of dating and a brief engagement. When the actress met her now-husband at her Broadway show, she was set on keeping things under wraps from the start.
“I was in a very public relationship and engagement, like I was on the cover of a bridal magazine,” said Washington. “When that relationship ended, I thought, Going forward, I need to have a different kind of boundary, so that my relationships can belong to me.”
In the years following her public split, Washington shot to fame as Olivia Pope in Shonda Rhimes’ Scandal, starring on the show for all seven seasons. The actress secretly tied the knot with Asomugha a year into the series in 2013, welcoming their first child, daughter Isabelle a year later.
“By the time people started talking trash, we were happily married and pregnant,” the actress gushed. “He was massaging my feet while we were laughing about some story on the internet about him partying at the Super Bowl without me.”
The pair have since gone on to welcome son Caleb, completing their family of 5 with a step-daughter from Asomugha’s previous relationship. Washington and Asomugha have been adamant about protecting their childrens’ privacy.
“I want them to make decisions about [that] when their brains are fully developed,” she said. “I’m not making it for them. They didn’t choose to be born into the public eye.”
Washington and Asomugha have maintained their private relationship for over a decade now, a feat to which Washington credits their longevity as a couple.
“We’d built so much trust that those attacks didn’t put a dent in what we’d created together.”
Despite keeping her home life private, Washington continues to stay active in her career, speaking to Bustle ahead of the second installment to Hulu series UnPrisoned. Costarring , the comedy follows single mom Paige Alexander (Washington) as she navigates life after her father (Lindo) is released from prison. Season 2 of UnPrisoned lands on Hulu on July 17.
