House of Cards season 5: Remy Danton will not be back, confirms Mahershala Ali

The actor was discussing Luke Cage with The Independent

While promoting his current Netflix show Luke Cage, Mahershala Ali confirmed he will not be returning to House of Cards for season five next year.

The actor has played Remy Danton on the show for the last four seasons, the fourth of which finished with the character quitting politics altogether.

Speaking about his career at the moment with The Independent, Ali said: “I think House of Cards has opened [my career] up for me. I just did my last season of House of Cards, I’m no longer on the show, and because of our conversations and being able to contractually move out of that series, I’ve been able to take advantage of other opportunities and get a sense of what was available for me out there.”

Those opportunities include starring in Moonlight, Matthew McConaughy's latest film Free State of Jones, and a role in the project Future Relic.

In the same interview, Ali spoke candidly about diversity on screen, saying: “I grew up not seeing myself on screen. I grew up always watching us be the friend, always supporting the narrative, always supporting the other person's journey, which is problematic because you don’t get to see yourself being at the forefront, being supported by other people. It’s really frustrating because, in many ways, it feels like you don’t exist.”

Read the full interview here. House of Cards season five is expected early 2017 while Luke Cage is currently available on the streaming service.