‘A terribly flawed woman is now president’

Netflix has revealed the release date and dropped a new trailer for the third season of The Diplomat, and things are getting even messier.

The new season arrives on Oct. 16, and, according to the preview, the political stakes have never been higher. Keri Russell returns as Ambassador Kate Wyler, who now finds herself deep in the fallout from last season’s chaos.

More from Gold Derby

The plot

The new season picks up right where Season 2 left off. Kate has accused Vice President Grace Penn (Allison Janney) of being behind a terrorist attack, admitted she wants the job for herself, and now the president (Michael McKean) is dead.

That twist leaves Penn unexpectedly stepping into the presidency. In the trailer, viewers get a glimpse of Penn being sworn in, while Kate confides to her husband, Hal (Rufus Sewell), “A terribly flawed woman is now president. And only we know just how flawed.”

And Hal, it turns out, may have inadvertently caused the president’s death. While the world deals with the power shift, Hal is still maneuvering behind the scenes to get Kate named vice president, despite Kate’s clash with Penn.

Bradley Whitford and Allison Janney in The DiplomatNetflix

Meanwhile, Kate is forced to reckon with a job she never actually wanted. Alongside that, she’s still entangled in a complicated relationship with U.K. Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison (David Gyasi) and managing tensions with the newly introduced first gentleman, Todd Penn (Bradley Whitford).

The cast and creatives

All the key cast members will be back for Season 3: Russell, Sewell, Janney, Gyasi, Ali Ahn, Rory Kinnear, Ato Essandoh, Nana Mensah, Miguel Sandoval. Despite perishing in the final episode, McKean is listed on the cast list. Whitford is the big new addition to the ensemble.

The executive producing team includes show creator Debora Cahn (The West Wing, Homeland), Russell, Janice Williams, Alex Graves, Peter Noah, and Eli Attie.

The Diplomat‘s Emmy history

The Diplomat first premiered in 2023 to critical acclaim and quickly picked up Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Lead Actress for Russell and Outstanding Drama Series.