In a bit of clever marketing that certainly can’t be coincidental, Netflix has released an ominous teaser for the fifth season of House of Cards on the same day that Donald Trump took office as President of the United States.
The brief promotional video for the next season of the hit series — which features a U.S. flag hung upside down in a sign of distress while children can be heard reciting the Pledge of Allegiance — also serves as the official announcement of the new season’s premiere date: Tuesday, May 30.
The recipient of 33 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and eight Golden Globe Award nominations so far, House of Cards enters its fourth season with U.S. President Francis Underwood (Kevin Spacey) running for re-election alongside his wife, Claire (Robin Wright).
Both Spacey and Wright have won Golden Globe Awards for their performances in the hit series, which was created by Beau Willimon and is based on the BBC miniseries of the same name. The British miniseries was based on a trilogy of novels authored by Michael Dobbs, the former chief of staff at Conservative Party headquarters in the U.K.
Over the course of four seasons, the Netflix series has seen Spacey’s character, a Democrat from South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District, go from small-time political player to U.S. president as he left a trail of secrets — and more than a few bodies — along the way.
Willimon stepped down as showrunner on the series after the fourth season, and the upcoming season will feature the debuts of Melissa James Gibson and Frank Pugliese as the new co-showrunners.
