‘House of Cards’ Final Season Resumes Production After Kevin Spacey Firing, Diane Lane Joins the Cast

Production on the final season of “House of Cards” has officially resumed as of January 31, Netflix confirms. The show, which is entering its sixth season, entered a production hiatus in October after sexual misconduct allegations were made against lead star Kevin Spacey. Netflix severed ties with Spacey shortly after the allegations were made and announced Robin Wright would lead the series in its final run of episodes.

“House of Cards” Season 6 will consist of eight episodes. In addition to returning players such as Wright, Michael Kelly, Patricia Clarkson, Constance Zimmer, and Campbell Scott, newcomers for the final season will be Diane Lane and Greg Kinnear. Netflix has not revealed what characters Lane and Kinnear will be playing, but the two will star as siblings in the show.

“House of Cards” has been airing on Netflix since 2013, when it made history as the streaming giant’s first original television series. The show has earned 53 Emmy nominations. Sources say Netflix was always intending to end the political drama after season six and that Spacey’s alleged misconduct had nothing to do with bringing the series to an end.

Wright has starred as Claire Underwood since the pilot episode. Netflix has not revealed how it intends to remove Spacey’s Frank Underwood from the series.