'House of Cards' season 5 spoilers and rumors: Doug Stamper kills himself?

The unfolding of events in "House of Cards" season 4 is fueling speculations about Doug Stamper's (Michael Kelly) purported absence in the fifth installment of the Netflix original series.

Frank Underwood's (Kevin Spacey) consigliere is one of the least liked characters in the American political drama series due to his unquestionable loyalty to his Machiavellian boss. It is quite rare for a hardened political veteran to find such a blindly obedient right-hand man to do his master's bidding. His expertise is manifested in various capacities as chief of staff, kidnapper, and murderer among other things.

Recently, a rumor emerges suggesting Kelly's departure from the series following earlier exits by fellow cast members like "Luke Cage" star Mahershala Ali per Game & Guide report. So far, Kelly hasn't offered any comment on his widely speculated departure from the show. His silence even encouraged the spread of plot rumors about the alleged death of his character as Stamper struggles to come to terms with himself.

Doug has always readied himself at his master's disposal. When Frank's health started to deteriorate in season 4, he offered his liver to extend his boss' life. However, donating his liver to Frank would not do any good because of his alcoholism. Instead, he took it upon himself to get someone else's liver to save dying Frank.

As Frank began to recover, Doug's conscience started haunting him after seeing his boss live at the expense of another person's life. This pushed him to extinguish his guilt by committing suicide. The immediate consequence of Doug's death in the series would be Frank's helplessness in his presidential bid.

Meanwhile, Kelly has recently dropped a teaser among fans in his recent interview saying "radical changes" are due to arrive next season largely due to showrunner Beau Willimon's effort.

"As we've gone along, you know, crazy s--t happens all the time. I feel like any big changes that have happened on the show, it's always well-warranted or well-deserved, that the audience will get it. They might have to wait longer than on your typical TV show, but they will bring you back," said Kelly in his interview with Deadline.

Due to his acting skills, Kelly managed to earn an Emmy nomination this year for his supporting role in the drama series category. He is competing with other drama series veterans like Jonathan Banks (Better Call Saul) Peter Dinklage and Kit Harrington from (Game of Thrones) Ben Mendelsohn from (Bloodline) and Jon Voight from (Ray Donovan).