Kerry Washington Hints “UnPrisoned” Season 2 Will Have a 'Special' Episode Inspired by 'A Christmas Carol' (Exclusive)

The actress tells PEOPLE about a festive episode of the Hulu dramedy that takes place during the holiday season

Christmas is coming early for the Alexander family on UnPrisoned.

During a recent visit to the set of the Hulu dramedy, which returns on July 17, Kerry Washington teased that one of the upcoming episodes of season 2 will take place during the holidays. On the show, the actress plays Paige Alexander, a therapist who must figure out how to reconnect with her formerly incarcerated dad Edwin (Delroy Lindo). Jordyn McIntosh, meanwhile, portrays a child version of Washington’s character.

“We have a special Christmas episode where we do kind of a Ghosts of Christmas past and future. It's like our take on A Christmas Carol,” Washington, 47, tells PEOPLE, adding, “We get to see some future Paige and some past Paige that we've never seen before. I really love that about this season.”

While other details around the episode remain scarce, McIntosh, 10, expressed excitement about reprising the role of young Paige and being reunited with other costars, who are like a second family to her.

“It’s like Kerry’s the mother, Delroy’s the dad, [Faly Rakotohavan] is the older brother, [Brenda Strong] is the stepmom, and then, here I am, the youngest. It’s like, hi, family!”

Related: Go Behind the Scenes with Kerry Washington on the Set of UnPrisoned's Second Season (Exclusive)

Working with Washington, in particular, has been a joy for McIntosh, who sees her as a role model and an “icon.” She admits, “During season 1, I was shaking and nervous. Now, I'm very chill, but still working. … This is a blessing to work with an actor who is so big right now.”

In season 2, fans can expect Paige (Washington) to grapple with her struggling therapy practice while working through her issues, which include finding a middle ground with her unreliable father, who was largely absent for much of her life.

“When we meet her at the beginning of the season, she's really holding onto that sense of who she wants to be by maintaining these very firm boundaries,” Washington explains. “But I think a lot of this season is about figuring out that relationships are about balancing boundaries with intimacy, and you can't just put walls up. You have to also let people in.”

Lindo hints that Edwin’s relationship with Nadine “shifts” in season 2 to make more room for Paige and Finn (Rakotohavan).

“It has to shift in order for [Edwin] to meet a larger family responsibility,” he continues, adding, “The family shifts, because we're all very much about the business of understanding each other, figuring out who we are, who want to be in a relationship to each other, and how we all as a family move forward.”

Related: Kerry Washington Read John Stamos' Memoir Ahead of Working Together on UnPrisoned: 'So Many Crazy Parallels' (Exclusive)

Finn — who develops anxiety — must learn how to navigate his mental health, which suffers from a combination of factors.

“He's at that age where he just has no idea what he's doing, what he wants to do, where to go, who to talk to — [he] just feels everything is on him,” Rakotohavan, 21, says. “He feels to blame for a lot of things, and I think that's a big cause of anxiety on its own … Finn [can] learn that he can rely on other people. He does not need to do all of this by himself.”

The season will ultimately follow the family’s journey as they work towards healing and togetherness.

“This family is really figuring out how to do that,” Washington says, “We’re feeling thrilled that we get to see this family on the next stage of their adventure of learning to love each other and live together.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

UnPrisoned season 2 premieres July 17 on Hulu.

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.