A day in the life of Frank Underwood
David Farnor | On 24, May 2017
Days before House of Cards returns for Season 5, there’s still a lot we don’t know about the upcoming season. What will happen after the Season 4 cliffhanger? Who will win between Kevin Spacey’s politician and Joel Kinnaman’s rival? What about Claire (Robin Wright)? Netflix has kept its lips tightly sealed about what’s in store for the series, now that former showrunner Beau Willimon has departed.
“Season four ends with the Underwoods promising to foment chaos and fear, and that’s where we pick up in season five,” says Melissa James Gibson, who serves as the new showrunner this season alongside Frank Pugliese.
That’s all we know on the new season, apart from the fact that new cast members will include Patricia Clarkson, Campbell Scott, Korey Jackson and James Martinez. In fact, after four seasons, we still don’t even know what Frank Underwood does all day.
That’s a question Netflix is willing to answer: this week, former Chief Official White House photographer for President Obama and Ronald Reagan, Pete Souza, has snapped Spacey and Michael Kelly’s loyal Chief of Staff, Doug Stamper, going about their business in Washington DC.
From ordering fast food to meeting members of the public in the street, it’s a bizarrely realistic sight, not least because it takes Underwood outside of the White House, a reminder of just how claustrophobic the show is, as it keeps us largely confined to those corridors of power.
“It was a pleasure working with Kevin and Michael and photographing them around some of D.C.’s most recognizable locations,” says Souza. “Whether photographing the real President or a fictitious presidential character, it’s an exciting experience.”
Frank Underwood’s latest appearance around the nation’s capital follows an unveiling of his portrait at the National Portrait Gallery last year, an event that Spacey attended in-character alongside Gallery Director, Kim Sajet, and members of the actual White House press corps. The portrait of House of Cards’ President Frank Underwood by British artist Jonathan Yeo was commissioned by the museum, which houses the only complete collection of presidential portraits outside of the White House.
All 13 episodes of Season 5 premiere on Netflix UK on Tuesday 30th May at 8.01am. Read on for the photo diary of a typical Underwood day.
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