‘Succession’ Series Finale Divides Fanbase: ‘Heartbreaking, Searing, Hilarious, Infuriating’

Editor’s note: Deadline’s It Starts on the Page features 10 standout drama series scripts in 2023 Emmy contention. It showcases the critical role writers’ work plays in a show’s success. All materials (the script and writers intro) were submitted before the WGA strike began on May 2.

Brian Cox and Emily Blunt have come together to discuss “Succession” and “The English,” two character-driven projects that examine the brutality of American culture. Both shows deal with wealth: Cox’s brooding media mogul Logan Roy met a shocking demise on the HBO series that had us bawling in its fourth and final season, while Blunt’s Lady Cornelia is an 1890s aristocrat seeking answers about the death of her son in the Amazon Prime Video limited series. In person, the two New York transplants have too much in common to capture in one interview. They begin chatting well before cameras roll, and keep going for 20 minutes after the shoot wraps. The two make plans for Blunt to show Cox “the best croissant in Brooklyn” as their handlers wait patiently in the wings.

Editor’s note: These interview was done outside of the FYC event as there was no cast or creatives panel as a part of the event.

Brian Cox is opening up about the Succession series finale but the actor has not watched how the show ended on HBO.

Josh Dallas (series protagonist Ben Stone) thinks there’s enough gas in the tank to fuel another takeoff.“I believe [the series’ final episode] is … the perfect ending for these characters,” Dallas, 44, told The Post. “It’s terrifying, emotional and surprising.

pulled off an unassisted triple play in the 1920 World Series.While Wambsgans did indeed emerge as head of Waystar Royco in the series’ final episode, “Succession” executive producer Frank Rich threw water on the idea that there was a long-plotted baseball Easter egg.“I hate to spoil the internet’s fun, but it’s false,” Rich told Slate. “Tom’s family name was picked before we had shot a first season, let alone mapped out precise story twists that would culminate 39 episodes later! Not to mention that many of the key writers on the show, starting with its creator, Jesse [Armstrong], are British, live in London, and are devoted to British football.”Do the names on Succession reveal the show’s ending? #succession #hbomax #tomwambsgans #billwambsganss #shivroy #successionhbo #successiontok #successionfinale #babynames #nameberry Semantically, Wambsgans did not pull off an unassisted triple play — he needed the help of his wife, Shiv Roy, whom he had already bested in the competition for the U.S.

HBO series Succession.Jeremy Strong has revealed that he attempted to jump into the river during his final scene in Succession, but was stopped by another cast member.The popular drama series came to its bitter conclusion last week (May 28), with the last episode of the fourth and final season drawing to a close with the Roy children finally losing control of their family’s media empire, and Tom Wambsgans named new CEO following the company’s acquisition by GoJo.In the last moments of the episode, the final scene shows Jeremy Strong’s character, Kendall Roy, alone in New York’s Battery Park contemplating the events that have just unfolded — and seemingly stripped of his life’s purpose.According to a new interview with Vanity Fair, however, the actor admitted that he tried to choose an alternate ending for his character, and attempted to jump into the Hudson River when filming.“To me, what happens at the board vote is an extinction level event for this character. There’s no coming back from that,” he explained, adding that he was stopped from climbing the railing by Scott Nicholson, who played Colin.“I tried to go into the water after we cut — I got up from that bench and went as fast as I could over the barrier and onto the pilings, and the actor playing Colin raced over,” he said.

This article contains major spoilers for the ‘Succession’ finale.Succession star Matthew Macfadyen has shared his thoughts on the HBO show’s dramatic finale, which aired earlier this week.After a power struggle between the Roy siblings after the death of their father Logan, the finale ended with Shiv Roy (Sarah Snook) backtracking on her pact with brothers Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and Roman (Kieran Culkin) to betray them and cast the deciding vote to sell Waystar Royco to Lukas Matsson’s (Alexander Skarsgård) GoJo company.This meant that Shiv’s husband and ATN boss Tom Wambsgans (Macfadyen) became boss of the company in a major twist after Matsson betrayed Shiv, who was initially in line for the CEO job.Speaking about the plot twist, Macfadyen told the New York Times: “Maybe she doesn’t choose Tom over her brothers. Maybe she just can’t stomach her big brother. It’s not a binary choice.

“AI ain’t gonna write Succession, or Chinatown or The Godfather,” says Jeremy Strong of what’s at stake with the writers’ strike. “It’s just not going to,” the actor who brought Jesse Armstrong’s words for Kendall Roy to life bluntly adds.

Jason Sudeikis is reflecting on his Ted Lasso journey as the Season 3 finale is just hours away from dropping—and it could be a series finale. Apple confirmed the episode titled “So Long, Farewell” will air Tuesday, May 30 at 9:00 p.m. PT. / 12:00 a.m. ET.

Warning: The following contains spoilers regarding Sunday’s series finale of “Succession.”It seems Tom Wambsgans’ fate on “Succession” may have been hiding in somewhat plain sight all along.Leading up to Sunday’s series finale of the critically acclaimed HBO series, in which the character played by actor Matthew Macfadyen is anointed the new CEO of Waystar Royco, a theory began circulating on the internet relating to the name Wambsgans and its connection to the baseball history.Do the names on Succession reveal the show’s ending? #succession #hbomax #tomwambsgans #billwambsganss #shivroy #successionhbo #successiontok #successionfinale #babynames #nameberry As explained in a now-viral video by Nameberry.com’s editor-in-chief, Sophie Kihm, the names featured in “Succession” are “very intentional” — for instance, the surname Roy meaning “king” — and if a moniker appears unusual, there’s likely a reason behind it.This is where Wambsgans comes in, as it’s the same last name of former Cleveland Guardians second baseman Bill Wambsganss, who completed the only unassisted triple play in World Series history in 1920.“It’s no coincidence that Tom shares a surname with Bill Wambsganss.

Anna Tingley If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. The profanity-riddled dialogue and whip smart writing of “Succession” finally came to a close on Sunday night with one last extremely dramatic finale episode, ending with the highly anticipated answer to the series-long question over who will take over the Roy empire.

Spoiler alert: The following article contains “Succession” series finale spoilers.

Alison Herman TV Critic SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers from “With Open Eyes,” the series finale of HBO’s “,” now streaming on Max. “Succession” ends in a place it’s been countless times before: with Kendall Roy, alone and adrift by a body of water. “With Open Eyes,” the feature-length conclusion to the Roy family saga, has many such full-circle moments. Some series finales radically break from their show’s typical rhythm, flashing forward to show us the full span of the characters’ lives (“Six Feet Under”) or transforming into a different concept altogether (“Girls”). But despite its length, “With Open Eyes” is the distilled, concentrated essence of “Succession,” even as it builds to a decisive break between the Roys and the company that’s no longer theirs — a union that’s otherwise informed every second of the series’ events.

This article contains spoilers from the series finale of “Succession.”“This show has always been a tragedy,” said director Mark Mylod of “Succession” in a segment that aired after the series finale of the Emmy-winning HBO series Sunday night.Mylod, who has directed 16 episodes of the series, called the finale “perfectly painful,” as the Roys literally came to blows before completely losing control of their father’s company. He praised series creator Jesse Armstrong, saying, “Jesse stuck the landing with this climactic showdown between the three siblings,” referring to the brutal scene where Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin) and Shiv (Sarah Snook), lashed out physically and verbally over the decision to sell the company. “The final ripping off of the bandage to expose that terrible, terrible truth put so simply by Roman,” he said of the scene in which Roman proclaims, “We are bulls—t.

[WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for the series finale of “Succession.”]After four seasons, “Succession” has come to an end — and Waystar RoyCo has a new CEO.In the 90-minute series finale, creator Jesse Armstrong wrapped up a string of conflicts, but ultimately had the goal of answering the question everyone has been asking since Season 1 premiered in 2018: Who will succeed Logan Roy (Brian Cox) as CEO?There were many ways the ending could’ve gone: Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) could’ve filled his father’s shoes — as Logan may or may not have wanted from the looks of the underline/cross-out on his official document, Kendall and Roman Roy (Kieran Culkin) could’ve stayed on as co-CEOs, GoJo could have acquired Waystar with Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård) coming out on top and naming Shiv Roy (Sarah Snook) as CEO, as well as many other possibilities.In the end, the hole left by the death of Logan Roy could only be filled by one person.Spoilers for Season 4, Episode 10, “With Open Eyes” are below, so stop scrolling now if you don’t want to know who got the crown.While it was always presumed that Logan Roy’s successor would be in the family bloodline, it didn’t exactly turn out that way.Neither Kendall, Roman, Shiv — or Connor (Alan Ruck), for that matter — ended up being the heir to the media mogul’s throne.After Matsson decided he wasn’t going to name Shiv as the CEO of the company, an unsuspecting person filled her in on who it would be.“Shiv, you should probably know: it’s me,” Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen) told his wife.As noted above, Greg found out by translating a conversation in Swedish that Matsson was not actually planning on giving the CEO title to Shiv, as he promised he would.Upon finding

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains spoilers for the series finale of HBO’s Succession.

Daniel D'Addario Chief TV Critic SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers from “With Open Eyes,” the series finale of HBO’s “Succession,” now streaming on Max. What a relief that the only votes being counted in the “Succession” finale were those of Waystar Royco board members. “Succession’s” series finale returned the show’s focus to the Roy family and their moves and countermoves against one another. How refreshing, after a season that was, on the whole and especially in recent weeks, cludgily paced and oddly unfocused. The polish and elegance of the show’s final moments stands in crisp counterpoint to a stretch of episodes that didn’t have the juice: It was as though the confirmation, at last, that the family business really would be changing hands reminded the show what gave it its elemental power.

SPOILER ALERT: This article contains details of tonight’s Succession series finale.