Once upon a time, Netflix ordered House of Cards for two seasons as a bold experiment in original programming. The streaming service has gotten far more ruthless with its vast lineup since, but does the political thriller have the juice for a sixth year, or beyond? Bosses say there’s “nothing absolute or nothing agreed upon.”

You’re warned of full spoilers for House of Cards Season 5 from here on out, but suffice to say, the “Chapter 65” finale left a distinct impression that Robin Wright’s Claire Underwood intended to enjoy “my turn” as President of the United States, regardless of Frank’s future. The series has come a long way from Kevin Spacey’s Frank Underwood achieving his dream of the Presidency in Season 2 (as well as the exit of showrunner Beau Willimon), but as new bosses Frank Pugliese and Melissa James Gibson tell The Hollywood Reporter. there’s no specific end yet in sight:

Going into this season without a season six pickup, did you write this finale to function both as a season and series finale?

Pugliese: Working on television, you have a sense that if it had to end there’s a way to end it, but there is almost always a plan for what it would mean to keep going forward.

James Gibson: But that’s the trick. It has to feel like an organic ending and an organic payoff to the arc of the season and in this case, I think you could argue that it really could go either way, so we were happy to hopefully leave the viewers wanting more.

Certainly those interested in exploring the series’ first female President are unnerved by recent high-profile cancellations like The Get Down or Sense8, but Pugliese also assures that creator Willimon never intended the series for an abrupt end:

You could say specifically there’s probably been several ideas of where it could end. There was nothing absolute or nothing agreed upon where it could end. Conversations we had from Beau and before were just some thematic promises and places the show might go thematically, or possibilities that the show had. But the show had so many. To a certain extent, we’re kind of delivering on conversations that were had, but it’s open to possibilities about where it could go.

We’ll see if Netflix’s ruthlessness extends to House of Cards, but how many 13-episode seasons should the political drama run, especially in light of real-world Washington strife? Watch the trailer below, catch all episodes streaming, and stay tuned.

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