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House of Cards Boss Knows Some of You Didn't Love Season Three—Here's What That Means for Season Four

Exclusive: "We have to walk a certain line," Beau Willimon explains

By Kristin Dos Santos Apr 28, 2015 7:05 PMTags
House of Cards, Season 3David Giesbrecht for Netflix

If you haven't watched all of season three of Netflix's House of Cards, be gone! Spoilers ahead, so go watch now, OK?

House of Cards is gearing up to start production on season four and executive producer Beau Willimon wants you fans to know: He does listen to your feedback.

Every fan will tell you House of Cards has some of the best writing on television, and season three was no different. However, the writers' approach to this storyline arc, which focused more on the powerhouse (but seriously flawed) marriage of President Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) and Claire Underwood (Robin Wright) was markedly changed in tone, and Willimon knows the reaction was somewhat divided.

Check out the video below for all the scoop from Beau Willimon...

Watch: Writer Beau Willimon Teases "House of Cards" Season 4

"We took a lot of risks with season three," Willimon told me at a House of Cards event at the TV Academy last night. "We wanted to delve deeper into the emotional story. We wanted a little less political intrigue and a little more of the emotional flux. We wanted to tell the story of the marriage. I think there were a lot of fans that really appreciated that. And for a lot of them, this turn that we took made it their favorite season."

But he knows not everyone loved it. "Of course, there were people who wanted to see the Underwoods kick butt in their usual fashion and have victory after victory and I'm sure it was hard for them to see the Underwoods tumble and sometimes fall. But if they didn't, they wouldn't be human, and it would make it seem like the presidency was a cakewalk, which we know it's not." 

So, given what he's heard from fans regarding season three, what does that mean for season four? Will the fan response inform the new story at all?

David Giesbrecht for Netflix

"We have to walk a certain line," Willimon explains. "We don't want to pander or cater an upcoming season based purely on fan responses. But I am interested in what they have to say and I think it's great we can talk to each other." 

Willimon, who serves as showrunner and head writer for the Netflix series, reveals that he and his writing staff have mapped out the entire storyline arc for the new season, which will begin production next month. He teases that the show will focus in on the presidential election—just as we are experiencing our own real-life presidential election—but the writers aren't specifically drawing on anything from real life.

"We are of the world," he explains. "We're reading the same headlines you are. I'm sure those things will influence us in subliminal ways. But we're not trying to deliberately parallel what's going on in real life. And it would be a fool's errand to try because we're writing the season many, many months before it airs. So if we did that, it would feel really old."

The biggest question, of course, is whether Claire Underwood really will leave Frank, and move on to better things, just as Frank is running for president. 

"We know she's walking out," Willimon says. "She says, 'I'm leaving you.' ...Whether it's completely broken, that's what we want people sucking on like a lozenge for however many months until we release the next season."

"I could see Claire Underwood doing anything she wanted," Kevin Spacey (Frank Underwood) teased to me with a sly smile. "Frank better watch his step."

As for who will—or won't—be a part of the season four cast, Willimon isn't commenting. When asked about Constance Zimmer, who recently hinted she may be reprising her role as reporter Janine (who fled to Ithaca to teach school after Kate Mara's Zoe was killed off), he said with a smile: "I can confirm or deny nothing."

The man behind the man with all the secrets sure can keep secrets, too.

House of Cards' fourth season is expected to launch in 2016 via Netflix.