Undoubtedly, the Shondaland universe has grown immensely. Sure, some shows are, ultimately, more successful than others. Nonetheless, every single world – which includes Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder, and most recently, Bridgerton have given fans an interesting mix of characters.
Over the years, Rhimes has made it clear that she takes pride in crafting empowered female characters. These women are fun, lovable, and even incredibly intelligent. Just check out these Shondaland leading ladies who seem to be the brainiest of the bunch:
Eloise Bridgerton
Although her sister, Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor), might be the central character in Bridgerton, it was Eloise (Claudia Jessie) who intrigues fans, nonetheless. After all, Eloise is anything but the typical young woman living in the 1800s. For starters, she wasn’t really interested in balls and other social gatherings.
Instead, Eloise would much rather focus on her studies. And although she eventually comes to detest Lady Whistledown, Eloise admires her at first for her independence. She once explained, “We should both aspire to be just like her. Unmarried, and earning our own money.”
Abby Whelan
Especially during the early seasons of Scandal, Abby (Darby Stanchfield) was, arguably, the most prominent “gladiator” on Olivia’s (Kerry Washington) team. As fans know, Abby is an attorney, who also enjoys taking on investigative work. She has a strong set of skills that’s necessary to have when the firm is trying to ‘fix’ a situation for a client. Abby also went on to serve as the Press Secretary for Fitz Grant’s (Tony Goldwyn) White House and later on as Chief of Staff. For her to rise through the ranks so quickly, she has to be a really intelligent person.
Tegan Price
On How to Get Away with Murder, Tegan (Amirah Vann) became known as Annalise Keating’s (Viola Davis) most formidable opponent in the courtroom.
This was around the time that she served as the personal counsel of Jorge Castillo (Esai Morales). Tegan got her law education from Stanford Law School and most notably, she passed the bar when was only 22 years old. After becoming a whistleblower for Jorge, Tegan went on to work at Caplan & Gold, where she immediately took on the position of managing partner.
Amelia Shepherd
Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) is just as much of a rock star neurosurgeon brother, Derek (Patrick Dempsey). In fact, she might arguably be better if fans compared their mortality success rates. As many fans know, Amelia attended Harvard Medical School where graduated at the top of her class.
She then chose to complete her surgical residency at Johns Hopkins. When Amelia first appeared on Private Practice, she was serving as a teaching fellow. Now, Amelia serves as the head of neurosurgery at Grey Sloan Memorial.
Maggie Pierce
Maggie (Kelly McCreary) is Meredith's (Ellen Pompeo) other half-sister who doesn't get introduced to Grey's Anatomy until the show's 10th season. Maggie is known to possess an incredibly high level of intelligence, finishing high school, college, and med school quite early in life.
Maggie also began her cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at the early age of 25. Currently, she is a co-head of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Grey Sloan Memorial and during a recent episode, she delivered a powerful monologue on COVID-19.
Annalise Keating
As the main character in How to Get Away with Murder, Annalise is the one that commands our attention most of the time and for good reason. After all, this woman has always been a force to reckon with, whether she’s in the courtroom or not.
Perhaps, one of things that even diehard fans didn’t know about Annalise is that she attended Harvard Law School. After passing the Pennsylvania bar exam, Annalise never looked back, working as a law professor and defense attorney. She also became a partner at Caplan & Gold.
Olivia Pope
In Scandal, Olivia was the ultimate superwoman. The one who was always there to save the day. It didn’t matter what type of mess the D.C. political circle had created. When Olivia came to town, she would ‘fix’ everything and problems magically go away.
To prepare for a career as a fixer, Liv went to law school, first attending Princeton to earn an undergraduate degree in Political Science before attending Georgetown Law. When she started working professionally, Olivia made a name for herself by getting Fitz Grant (Tony Goldwyn) elected president.
Cristina Yang
Cristina was one of the more interesting interns featured in Grey’s Anatomy’s pilot episode. From the start, Cristina made it clear that she was determined to be the best surgeon in the group.
As for her educational background, Cristina got her M.D. from the Stanford University School of Medicine. As expected, she graduated first in her class. She also earned a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of California Berkeley. Cristina is now the Director of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Klausman Institute for Medical Research.
Meredith Grey
When Grey's Anatomy's titular character was first introduced to fans, it was clear that she was quite an intelligent woman. Straight from the get-go, fans could see that Meredith was going to become a great surgeon.
Not only did she correct Alex's (Justin Chambers) medical knowledge after he neglects a patient on her first day but she impressed the attendings by spotting a brain tumor they overlooked. As the show evolved, Meredith has proven to be a world-renowned surgeon, winning the prestigious Catherine Fox award and also the Head of General Surgery at Grey Sloan Memorial.
Mellie Grant
At the beginning of Scandal, Mellie (Bellamy Young) is introduced as a first lady who seemed to be content to live in her husband, Fitz’s, shadow. As the show progressed and her marriage crumbled, however, Mellie decided it was time to make her own political moves. After all, she’s as formidable as they come, having graduated from Harvard at the top of her class.
After being elected as a junior senator, Mellie didn’t hesitate to eventually run for president. With the help of Olivia, Mellie eventually became the first female President of the United States.