( EW.com ) -- When last we saw Olivia Pope , she was flying off into the sunset ( or maybe just flying off ) with Jake by her sideâ€ ” leaving behind a broken Fitz , who 'd just lost his son and realized some horrible things about his father . D.C. now rests in the hands of Olivia 's own father , who once again took over B-613 . So what awaits the team when season four starts up ? How about a new face ? EW has confirmed that `` Arrested Development '' star Portia de Rossi will join `` Scandal 's '' fourth season for a multiple-episode arc . Ellen DeGeneres first announced the news on Twitter , bragging about her wife 's `` top secret '' storyline . Could the words `` top secret '' mean de Rossi is a part of Papa Pope 's B-613 army ? We 'll find out Thursday , Sept. 25 at 9 p.m. , when Scandal returns on ABC . ABC fall premiere dates announced : 'Scandal ' returns . Former 'Scandal ' actor Columbus Short arrested in Texas . See the original story at EW.com . CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly . © 2011 Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. All rights reserved .
The actress will join season 4 . Ellen DeGeneres first announced the news on Twitter . The storyline is `` top secret ''