House of Cards (season 4)
| House of Cards (season 4) | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Netflix |
| Original release | March 4, 2016 |
The fourth season of the American web television drama series House of Cards was announced by Netflix via Twitter on April 2, 2015. Filming began on June 16, 2015. The season premiered on March 4, 2016.
Production
On April 2, 2015, Netflix announced via its Twitter account that it had renewed House of Cards for a fourth season of undisclosed length, to be released in early 2016. The tweet read: "I will leave a legacy. #Underwood2016".[1] The first casting calls were announced on May 5, 2015, to occur on May 15.[2] Film crews were spotted filming on June 16, 2015.[3]
In December 2015, it was revealed during a 2016 Republican Party presidential debate through faux advertising that the season would premiere on March 4, 2016.[4] In January, show creator, executive producer and showrunner Beau Willimon's departure following the season was announced.[5] The first trailer for the season, which focused on the contentious relationship between the Underwoods, was released on February 10.[6] The press release associated with the trailer said "In an election year, the stakes are now higher than ever, and the biggest threat they face is contending with each other."[7]
Cast
On July 1, 2015, Neve Campbell was announced as having been cast for season 4.[8] In September 2015, Colm Feore was announced as having a recurring role.[9] In February 2016, Joel Kinnaman was announced as having a recurring role.[10] On February 10, Ellen Burstyn and Cicely Tyson were announced as part of the cast in conjunction with the release of the first trailer for the season.[7]
- Kevin Spacey as Francis "Frank" J. Underwood, the President of the United States[11]
- Robin Wright as Claire Underwood, First Lady of the United States and former United States Ambassador to the United Nations[11]
- Michael Kelly as Douglas "Doug" Stamper, the White House Chief of Staff[11]
- Mahershala Ali as Remy Danton, the former White House Chief of Staff under President Underwood[11]
- Jayne Atkinson as Catherine Durant, Secretary of State[11]
- Neve Campbell as LeAnn Harvey,[12] a Texas-based political consultant[11][13]
- Derek Cecil as Seth Grayson[11]
- Nathan Darrow as Edward Meechum,[11] the Underwood's Secret Service bodyguard
- Kim Dickens as Kate Baldwin[11]
- Elizabeth Marvel as Heather Dunbar,[11] the former Solicitor General of the United States and Democratic presidential candidate
- Dominique McElligott as Hannah Conway,[11] wife of New York Governor and Republican presidential nominee Will Conway
- Molly Parker as Jacqueline "Jackie" Sharp,[11] the Deputy House Minority Whip and Democratic presidential candidate
- Damian Young as Aidan Macallan,[11] data scientist and friend of LeAnn Harvey
- Paul Sparks as Thomas Yates[11]
- Sebastian Arcelus as Lucas Goodwin
- Boris McGiver as Tom Hammerschmidt, the former editor of The Washington Herald and former boss of Lucas Goodwin
- Ellen Burstyn as Elizabeth Hale, Claire's mother[11][14]
- Colm Feore as General Brockhart
- Cicely Tyson as Doris Jones, a Texas congresswoman[11][14]
- Lisa Gay Hamilton as Celia Jones, Doris' daughter
- Joel Kinnaman as Will Conway, the Republican nominee for president and Governor of New York [11][15]
- Lars Mikkelsen as Viktor Petrov, the President of the Russian Federation
- Larry Pine as Bob Birch, the House Minority Leader and a Democratic U.S. Representative from Michigan
- Reed Birney as Donald Blythe, the Vice President of the United States
- Eisa Davis as Cynthia Driscoll, Heather Dunbar's campaign manager
- Curtiss Cook as Terry Womack, the House Minority Whip
- Constance Zimmer as Janine Skorsky
- Michel Gill as Garrett Walker, the former President of the United States and Frank's predecessor
- Kate Mara as Zoe Barnes
- Corey Stoll as Peter Russo
- Kathleen Chalfant as Margaret Tilden, CEO of The Washington Herald
- Gerald McRaney as Raymond Tusk, former associate of President Walker and adversary of Frank
- Reg E. Cathey as Frederick 'Freddy' Hayes
- Wendy Moniz as Laura Moretti, widow of a liver transplant candidate
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | 1 | "Chapter 40" | Tucker Gates | Beau Willimon | March 4, 2016 | HOC-401 |
| Claire's absence is causing problems for Franks 2016 campaign and there are rumors of a marital rift. Claire later tries to strike out on her own without any help. | ||||||
| 41 | 2 | "Chapter 41" | Tucker Gates | Melissa James Gibson | March 4, 2016 | HOC-402 |
| Claire starts her own power play, putting her and Frank at odds with each other. | ||||||
| 42 | 3 | "Chapter 42" | Robin Wright | Frank Pugliese | March 4, 2016 | HOC-403 |
| Claire helps Frank with the South Carolina primary, but he doesn't trust her. A scandal hits Frank's campaign there. | ||||||
| 43 | 4 | "Chapter 43" | Robin Wright | John Mankiewicz | March 4, 2016 | HOC-404 |
| Frank plays a dangerous political game that could trigger Russia. An incident occurs during Frank's campaign, and everything changes. | ||||||
| 44 | 5 | "Chapter 44" | Tom Shankland | Melissa James Gibson | March 4, 2016 | HOC-405 |
| Claire helps acting President Blythe on how to deal with President Petrov; Lucas Goodwin's accusations are brought to light. | ||||||
| 45 | 6 | "Chapter 45" | Tom Shankland | Laura Eason | March 4, 2016 | HOC-406 |
| Claire clashes with Catherine Durant over her involvement in the negotiations with Russia. Dunbar has to choose between her campaign and her moral values. | ||||||
| 46 | 7 | "Chapter 46" | Tom Shankland | Bill Kennedy | March 4, 2016 | HOC-407 |
| Claire and Frank are back together and working to achieve the bigger goal; Frank starts his search for a running mate and begins a campaign to weaken Conway. | ||||||
| 47 | 8 | "Chapter 47" | Alex Graves | John Mankiewicz | March 4, 2016 | HOC-408 |
| Formidable as ever, both Underwoods have their eyes on the big picture as they manipulate a potential running mate and push the gun bill. | ||||||
| 48 | 9 | "Chapter 48" | Robin Wright | Frank Pugliese | March 4, 2016 | HOC-409 |
| During the convention, Frank pushes Catherine Durant forward as his running mate, but behind the scenes, he has different plans. | ||||||
| 49 | 10 | "Chapter 49" | Robin Wright | Melissa James Gibson and Kenneth Lin | March 4, 2016 | HOC-410 |
| When Frank's candidacy comes under pressure again, Claire starts doubting their plan. She also has to make a difficult decision concerning her mother. | ||||||
| 50 | 11 | "Chapter 50" | Kari Skogland | Tian Jun Gu | March 4, 2016 | HOC-411 |
| Frank wants to act against terrorism as a response to Conway's public display of power. Tom helps Claire with her campaign. | ||||||
| 51 | 12 | "Chapter 51" | Jakob Verbruggen | Laura Eason and Bill Kennedy | March 4, 2016 | HOC-412 |
| Frank asks Conway to help him handle extremists who are about to murder hostages. Hammerschmidt investigates the allegations against Frank. Doug clashes with other staff members, causing a severe outburst from Frank in defense of Doug. The Hostage situation deteriorates at much faster pace. Tom Hammerschmidt decides to publish an article in the Washington Herald. Jackie and Remy panic, knowing that associates of the Herald are aware of the relationship between them. However, Frank doesn't pay much heed to this. | ||||||
| 52 | 13 | "Chapter 52" | Jakob Verbruggen | Beau Willimon | March 4, 2016 | HOC-413 |
| As the hostage crisis continues, Claire starts negotiating with Yusuf al Ahmadi. After applying pressure and using persuasive tactics, the terrorists are forced to release the girl and her mother, both of whom are rescued by the FBI after the terrorists disclose their location. Frank confronts Hammerschmidt, but the situation deteriorates quickly when The Washington Herald releases the article written by Hammerschmidt. It implicates different scenarios involving Jackie, Remy and former President Walker. Both Remy and Jackie go into hiding within 24 hours of the article's release. Frank makes a speech to the public, asking the nation to stand firm in times of crisis. The end of the episode shows Frank and Claire sitting in the CIA operations room watching the terrorist live video stream depicting their live slaughter of Mr. Mills. | ||||||
Reception
Critical response
The fourth season has received positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the season has a score of 76 out of 100 based on 17 reviews.[16] On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an 87% approval rating, with an average rating of 7.8/10 based on 30 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "House of Cards retains its binge-worthiness by ratcheting up the drama, and deepening Robin Wright's role even further."[17] Matt Fowler of IGN gave the season a rating of 8.6 out of 10 and labelled the season "great" with particular praise given to the performances, the addition of new characters, connections to previous seasons and adding new adversaries to the Underwoods.[18]
Accolades
House of Cards received 13 nominations in the drama categories for the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Drama Series, Kevin Spacey for Outstanding Lead Actor, Robin Wright for Outstanding Lead Actress, Michael Kelly for Outstanding Supporting Actor, Reg E. Cathey, Paul Sparks and Mahershala Ali for Outstanding Guest Actor, and Ellen Burstyn and Molly Parker for Outstanding Guest Actress.[19]
References
- ↑ Zurawik, David (April 2, 2015). "'House of Cards' renewed for a 4th season by Netflix". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
- ↑ Zurawik, David (May 5, 2015). "'House of Cards' announces first casting call for new season in Bel Air". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
- ↑ Costello, Darcy (June 16, 2015). "Hampden hosts 'House of Cards' shoot". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
- ↑ Ausiello, Michael (December 15, 2015). "House of Cards Season 4: Netflix Announces 2016 Premiere Date". TVLine. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
- ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (January 28, 2016). "'House Of Cards' Renewed For Season 5 By Netflix, Creator Beau Willimon Departs". Deadline.com. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
- ↑ Leeds, Sarene (February 11, 2016). "It's Underwood vs. Underwood in the Latest 'House of Cards' Trailer". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
- 1 2 Butler, Karen (February 11, 2016). "Ellen Burstyn, Cicely Tyson join 'House of Cards' for Season 4". UPI. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
- ↑ Zurawik, David (July 1, 2015). "Neve Campbell joining cast of 'House of Cards'". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
- ↑ Petski, Denise (September 3, 2015). "Colm Feore Joins 'House Of Cards' As Recurring". Deadline.com. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
- ↑ Prudom, Laura (February 2, 2016). "'The Killing' Star Joel Kinnaman Joins 'House of Cards' Season 4". Variety. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 "Video: "House of Cards" Season Four Trailer" (Press release). Netflix. February 10, 2016. Retrieved February 11, 2016.
- ↑ Power, Ed (February 24, 2016). "House of Cards, Season Four, first-look review: a deliciously dark return to form". The Telegraph. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
- ↑ Zurawik, David (February 22, 2016). "First hour of Season 4 of 'House of Cards' is looking good". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- 1 2 Zurawik, David (February 28, 2016). "'House of Cards' is built on women in Season 4". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
- ↑ Maidy, Alex (February 25, 2016). "TV Review: House of Cards - Season Four". JoBlo. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
- ↑ "House of Cards (2013) : Season 4". Metacritic. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
- ↑ "House of Cards: Season 4". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
- ↑ Fowler, Matt (March 5, 2016). "House of Cards: Season 4 Review". IGN. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
- ↑ Prudom, Laura (July 14, 2016). "Emmy Nominations 2016: Full List of Nominees". Variety. Retrieved July 14, 2016.