House of Cards (2013)/Season One

Season One
House of Cards (2013)
Season Release	February 1, 2013
Episode Count	13
Previous N/A	Next Season Two

House of Cards season 1 promotional poster

Season One (2013) of House of Cards premiered exclusively on Netflix's instant streaming service on February 1, 2013. Set in present day Washington, D.C., House of Cards tells the story of Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey), a prominent and powerful Democrat Congressman from South Carolina who gets passed over for Secretary of State despite helping elect a President who promised him the title. Throughout the season, Frank Underwood frequently breaks the fourth wall to talk to the viewers in an inner monologue as he details his methods of exacting revenge on the D.C. insiders who betrayed him. In parallel stories, the first season also follows Underwood's wife, Claire (Robin Wright), who runs a non-profit organization often at odds with the political ambitions of her husband. Other intertwining storylines highlight Peter Russo (Corey Stoll), a Congressman attempting to control his drug addiction and Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara), an up-and-coming reporter searching for her first big break.

Making use of Netflix's novel delivery method, executive producer David Fincher decided to have all 13 episodes of the first season available to stream immediately.

Cast

Main Cast

• Kevin Spacey as Representative Francis "Frank" J. Underwood (SC-05), House Majority Whip and primary lead character of the season. (13 episodes)
• Robin Wright as Claire Underwood, Francis' wife and executive officer of the Clean Water Initiative, a non-profit aimed at providing clean water sources in third-world countries. (13 episodes)
• Kate Mara as Zoe Barnes, an up-and-coming reporter for The Washington Herald who bargains with Frank for insider information. (12 episodes)
• Corey Stoll as Representative Peter Russo (PA-01), an alcoholic and drug addict whose transgressions are blackmailed by Underwood in exchange for loyalty. (11 episodes)
• Michael Kelly as Doug Stamper, Underwood's Chief of Staff. (13 episodes)
• Sakina Jaffrey as Linda Vasquez, President Matthews' Chief of Staff and Underwood's former colleague. (11 episodes)
• Kristen Connolly as Christina Gallagher, a congressional staffer involved in a relationship with Congressman Russo (13 episodes)
• Sebastian Arcelus as Lucas Goodwin, an editor at The Washington Herald who defends Zoe's rise to success. (8 episodes)

Supporting and Recurring Cast

• Nathan Darrow as Edward Meechum, Underwood's Congressional bodyguard and driver. (9 episodes)
• Michael Gill as President Garrett Walker. (9 episodes)
• Sandrine Holt as Gillian Cole, a prominent grassroots organizer who Claire hires for her non-profit. (9 episodes)
• Elizabeth Norment as Nancy Kaufberger, Underwood's secretary. (9 episodes)
• Constance Zimmer as Janine Skorsky, a reporter for The Washington Herald who becomes jealous and suspicious of Zoe. (9 episodes)
• Mahershala Ali as Remy Danton, a powerful natural gas lobbyist with close ties to Underwood. (7 episodes)
• Rachel Brosnahan as Rachel Posner, a former prostitute who entangles herself in Underwood's plans. (7 episodes)
• Reg E. Cathey as Freddy Hayes, owner of Freddy's BBQ, Underwood's frequented eatery. (7 episodes)
• Ben Daniels as Adam Galloway, a photographer and former lover of Claire. (6 episodes)
• Tawny Cypress as Carly Heath, editor of Slugline. (5 episodes)
• Boris McGiver as Tom Hammerschmidt, editor-in-chief of The Washington Herald. (5 episodes)
• Larry Pine as Speaker Bob Birch. (5 episodes)
• Karl Kenzler as Senator Charles Holburn. (4 episodes)
• Dan Ziskie as Vice President Jim Matthews, former Governor of Pennsylvania. (4 episodes)
• Jayne Atkinson as Secretary of State Catherine Durant, former Senator (D-MO). (3 episodes)
• Kathleen Chalfant as Margaret Tilden, owner of The Washington Herald. (3 episodes)
• Chance Kelly as Steve, Underwood's Congressional bodyguard and driver. (3 episodes)
• Al Sapienza as Marty Spinella, a union lobbyist. (3 episodes)
• Wass Stevens as Paul Capra, a senior Philadelphia union official. (3 episodes)
• Reed Birney as Representative Donald Blythe, a very liberal member of Congress.  (2 episodes)
• Kevin Kilner as Senator Michael Kern (D-CO). (2 episodes)
• Gerald McRaney as Raymond Tusk, a billionaire and confidant of President Walker. (2 episodes)
• Maryann Plunkett as Evelyn Baxter, a top office manager at the Clean Water Initiative. (2 episodes)
• Michael Siberry as House Majority Leader David Rasmussen. (2 episodes)

Production

The season was produced by independent studio Media Rights Capital who obtained the rights from the original BBC adaptation. Executive producer David Fincher pitched the idea to several networks, including HBO, AMC, and Showtime, but all three were outbid by Netflix, who used the first season as a launchpad for Netflix original programming. The staff writers for this season were Beau Willimon, Keith Huff, Rick Cleveland, Sarah Treem, Sam Forman, Kate Barnow, and Gina Gionfriddo. The directors were Fincher, James Foley, Joel Schumacher, Charles McDougall, Carl Franklin, and Allen Coulter. Each director filmed two consecutive episodes, with Foley directing an additional episode afterward.

Episodes

#	#	Title	Written By	Directed By
1	1	Chapter 1	Beau Willimon	David Fincher
2	2	Chapter 2	Beau Willimon	David Fincher
3	3	Chapter 3	Keith Huff & Beau Willimon	James Foley
4	4	Chapter 4	Rick Cleveland & Beau Willimon	James Foley
5	5	Chapter 5	Sarah Treem	Joel Schumacher
6	6	Chapter 6	Sam Forman	Joel Schumacher
7	7	Chapter 7	Kate Barnow & Beau Willimon	Charles McDougall
8	8	Chapter 8	Beau Willimon	Charles McDougall
9	9	Chapter 9	Beau Willimon & Rick Cleveland	James Foley
10	10	Chapter 10	Sarah Treem	Carl Franklin
11	11	Chapter 11	Keith Huff & Kate Barnow & Beau Willimon	Carl Franklin
12	12	Chapter 12	Gina Gionfriddo & Beau Willimon	Allen Coulter
13	13	Chapter 13	Beau Willimon	Allen Coulter

Reception

Awards

With nine nominations, House of Cards is the first online original programming television series to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. It was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for Kevin Spacey, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Robin Wright, and Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for David Fincher. On September 15, 2013, Eigil Bryld won a Creative Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series and Laray Mayfield and Julie Schubert picked up Creative Emmy Awards for Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series. On September 22, 2013, Fincher won an Emmy for Oustanding Directing for a Drama Series ("Chapter 1").

Ratings

Netflix has not released official viewing figures for House of Cards, but an official spokesperson has stated that Netflix is “happy with the reception the show has gotten in the media, on social media and from our members in reviews.”

Media Releases

Online, House of Cards is exclusive to Netflix. In the United States, the season was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 11, 2013 and was available for rental through Redbox. Director's commentary was added to all 13 episodes on January 3, 2014.