Scott Foley Wonders 'Why the Hell' He Did a Shirtless Scene at 51 — and Shares How His Wife Kept Him in Shape

In new Max series 'The Girls on the Bus', Foley's politician character will strip down for one journalist's fantasy

Scott Foley isn’t letting age shape his opportunities.

The Scandal alum spoke about why he decided to strip down in his upcoming Max series The Girls on the Bus. An upcoming episode will see Foley, 51, giving a sexy, shirtless dance during a “fantasy” moment for the lead character — and Foley said he built his confidence to take part in the scene.

"In the show, Sadie McCarthy, played by Melissa Benoist — she has these sort of fantasy episodes," he said while speaking with Entertainment Tonight. "It was at once the most terrifying and sort of the most rewarding thing to shoot."

"I'm 51 years old. It's not great. Why the hell am I taking my shirt off on TV?" Foley laughed.

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Foley also said his wife, Marika Domińczyk, helped motivate him for the striptease moment in the days before filming.

"I remember a couple of days before we shot it, I was sitting at breakfast with my wife about to take a bite of bread and she sort of grabbed my hand and put it down just like, 'Maybe we put the bread down for a couple days,’” he said.

Related: Scott Foley Recalls the Night Before His Wedding to Wife of 16 Years Marika: 'So in Love with Her'

The Girls on the Bus will allow Foley to follow in the tone of his previous, political roles. He’ll play a small town mayor who decides to run for president. Foley said he based his portrayal of the character on U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.

“I was so sort of familiar with the political world from Scandal that this seemed like an easy fit," Foley explained. "It's fun and light, and for me doing something different sort of in the same sphere, it was an easy transition."

Alongside Foley and Benoist, Natasha Behnam, Carla Gugino and Christina Elmore star in the series, playing journalists following a group of presidential candidates throughout the election process.

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The Girls on the Bus is now available to stream on Max.

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