'House of Cards' Boris McGiver Says the Netflix Hit's Parallels to Real Life Are No Accident
*By Samantha Errico*
Boris McGiver didn't need to research his journalist character on "House of Cards" ー he simply had to read the scripts.
"The writing was and remains so good," McGiver said Monday of the show, which was the first of Netflix's ($NFLX) binge-watchable programming when it premiered in 2013 and is now wrapping up after six seasons.
McGiver played no-nonsense journalist Tom Hammerschmidt, a veteran reporter on a mission to expose the corruption behind the Underwoods' political empire.
Fans have commented on the show's sometimes-eerie parallels to real life, from political sex scandals to unexpected power-grabs.
"I think they just have always had their fingers on the pulse of zeitgeist ー that's how good these writers are, and they all remain that good, much to their credit," McGiver said.
The final season comes on the heels of sexual assault allegations against lead actor Kevin Spacey. Spacey's character Frank Underwood was killed between seasons, and to fill the void he left behind, Oscar-nominated actors Diane Lane and Greg Kinnear were added to the cast. The two actors portray powerful siblings Annette and Bill Shepherd, who together run the industrial conglomerate Shepherd Unlimited and bring "money-power" to the show.
McGiver sees more parallels to real life in that storyline.
"That's what the reality is ー it's money. We watch this every day, we watch political stuff happening. It's money behind the votes, behind their [speech], behind their choices. It's the money talking," McGiver said.
All final episodes of the political thriller are available on Netflix.
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