Netflix's 'The Diplomat': When women rule the world
In Season 3 of Netflix’s The Diplomat, women rule the world. The president of the United States is a woman; the American ambassador to the United Kingdom is a woman; the White House chief of staff is a woman; the chief of the CIA station in London is a woman; and one of the prime movers of the deadly bombing that is the lynchpin of all three seasons—is, you guessed it, a woman.
The hand that rocks the cradle gets to punch the codes in a nuclear attack.
The men in the series play supporting roles, and in a reverse of positions in traditional storylines—the men don’t occupy the throne but in many instances, are the power behind it.
So who rules in The Diplomat, Season 3? You have to watch the fast-paced series (which entertains as well as piques your brain) to find out.
Do the characters reflect what’s going on in the world stage, where more and more women are elected president or prime minister of their country?
The “small” (in terms of membership) club of women heads of state and government, which once included game-changers like the late Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Indira Gandhi, Golda Meir, Margaret Thatcher, and Cory Aquino, is now growing exponentially.
(As of September 2025, there are 32 women serving as heads of state and/or government across 29 countries, according to UN Women. While the total number is 32, 25 countries are led by a woman in total, with women in some countries serving as both head of state and head of government.)
“In Season 3, we pick right up on that moment where Grace (portrayed by Allison Janney) has no idea what’s going on,” The Diplomat creator and showrunner Debora Cahn is quoted as saying by the Netflix publication Tudum. “All Grace knows is that her Secret Service detail is racing toward her—and there are only a couple of things that can create that situation.”
Keri Russell is Kate Wyler, a seasoned US diplomat who is the ambassador to the United Kingdom. She is the person in the title role, though the series has several diplomats. Attractive even if her hair is often disheveled and she sometimes doesn’t shower in between crucial trans-Atlantic meetings (time, oh precious time!), she’s a brilliant strategist. All the powerful men surrounding her seem to have a secret or not-so-secret crush on her. Since beautiful women with long hair can be underestimated, Kate somehow has formulated the alchemy composed of power and puff—she knows when to show off her balls, or her breasts.
Janneyis US President Grace Penn, the new leader of the free world. At the end of Season 2, Grace, then vice president, is on the lawn of the US Embassy Residence in London, Secret Service agents running towards her. She has skeletons in her closet, lots of them.
Grace hits the ground running in the third season—literally.
The six-feet-tall Janney as Grace Penn looks like a mogul and a warrior (I can’t forget the tough and muscled character she played in the movie Lou) and she carries this tough-as-nails persona as vice president, and later, president. She has a sleek power bob as well, but make no mistake—President Penn is sexy in the bedroom with…her husband. Again, looks deceive, perceptions can be wrong. Grace’s actual femininity despite her stone façade is her pasabog. Find out why (and with whom!) at the end of Season 3. Wink, wink.
Ali Ahn is Eidra Park, the chief of the CIA station in London, one of the largest CIA hubs in the world. She walks the tightrope between the CIA and MI6. Like most station chiefs, she manages CIA activities in the station, like espionage, covert influence, counter-terrorism.
Ahn is of Korean descent and this shows that barriers are breaking not only for women but also for American women of Asian descent—both for the actress Ahn (who graduated magna cum laude from Yale) and the fictitious Eidra.
Nana Mensah is Billie Appiah, the White House chief of staff. She seems to be the second most powerful person in the White House. She’s the little president, so to speak. Like most chiefs of staff, she is keeper of the gate. Most of the time, she calls the shots because of the unique access she has to the president. Until something or someone shifts the balance of power in Season 3. Excited yet?
Behind the throne
The men behind the throne are of course, led by the First Gentleman, Todd Penn, Grace’s mysterious husband, portrayed by Bradley Whitford.
Although the world is focused on President Grace, Todd is emerging as a force not to be dismissed. To her credit, Ambassador Kate Wyler quickly realizes this, and she gets results for her intuitiveness.
I once asked First Lady Ming Ramos who her husband President Fidel Ramos’ closest adviser is and without batting an eyelash, she replied, “I am.”
One can’t discount the power of the person who shares your name, your home, your bedroom, your dining table, your past, your memories.
First Gentlemen are usually in awkward positions because culturally and anthropologically, men are the alphas in the home, the foragers, the warriors, the protectors. And then suddenly, your wife is the commander-in-chief of your armed forces. Still, Todd finds his place in his wife’s orbit.
Ambassador Kate Wyler’s second in command is Stuart Hayford portrayed by Ato Essandoh. Stuart is the deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in London. He’s her loyal right-hand man, who happens to have strong ties with Billie, the White House chief of staff. So, his connections to two powerful women give him clout. But he is still largely a behind-the- scenes guy.
Last but not the least is devilishly charming Hal Wyler, portrayed by Rufus Sewell. He is the husband of Ambassador Kate and a diplomat himself, though “benched” but visible in Seasons 1 and 2.
In Season 3, he not only is called from the bench but gets to be a key piece in the political chessboard. In fact, Hal Wyler gets to make some crucial moves himself.
If the ending of the first two seasons were political blasts, the ending of Season 3 is more, uh…personal.
The queen is said to be the most powerful piece in a game of chess. In Season 3 of The Diplomat, she is.
The women and the men behind their thrones surprise viewers by their moves in Season 3’s chessboard of love and politics…sometimes, not too diplomatically.
(A Season 4 is reportedly in the offing.)
