'House of Cards' Season 5: Campbell, Spacey Claim Series Gets Better on Its Fifth Year Despite Changes
One of this season's most anticipated Netflix original series will finally have its fifth season released this month, and fans couldn't be happier. But can "House of Cards" still manage to live up to its name?
There has been much concern over the hit political drama series' potential to match or even surpass the success of its previous seasons, especially since original series creator Beau Willimon stepped down at the end of season 4. Hardcore fans and critics alike may have cause to fear for the future of the series, but actress Neve Campbell, who plays the political consultant LeAnn Harvey, sees things in a different way.
At a recent press junket organized by Netflix in New York City, Campbell told Cinemablend that things did feel different and challenging since Willimon left, but she also said that Netflix also did the right thing when they chose people from within the series' circle of writers as new showrunners.
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"I think Netflix was really smart in not taking someone from outside the show, and trying to bring them in. Because they had big shoes to fill," Campbell said.
Senior writers Frank Pugliese and Melissa James Gibson, who both joined the series during the third season, have been promoted as new showrunners. Having worked with Willimon for the past two seasons has given Pugliese and Gibson valuable knowledge not just on how to run the show, but also on how to handle the complexities of its multi-faceted characters.
Meanwhile, on the matter of the show not being able to compete with what's already been going on in real world politics, actor Kevin Spacey, who plays series president Frank Underwood, told Bloomberg that the upcoming fifth season is "one of the best" they've done.
"This year, in particular, there's been a lot of commentary about how we can't compete in the real world, so it's not going to be as interesting and the show can't possibly be as crazy as the real world," Spacey said. "And my answer to that is, just you wait. Just you wait," he added.
"House of Cards" season 5 debuts on Tuesday, May 30 on Netflix. Fans can watch the official trailer for the upcoming season below.
