Succession (TV series)
Succession is an American satirical comedy-drama television series created by Jesse Armstrong. It premiered on June 3, 2018, on HBO, and has been renewed for a third season. The series centers on the Roy family, the dysfunctional owners of Waystar Royco, a global media and hospitality empire, who are fighting for control of the company amid uncertainty about the health of the family's patriarch, Logan Roy.
Among the series ensemble cast are Kieran Culkin as Roman, Sarah Snook as Siobhan, and Jeremy Strong as Kendall, Logan's children employed by the company. Matthew Macfadyen stars as Tom Wambsgans, Siobhan's husband and Waystar executive, Nicholas Braun as Greg Hirsch, Logan's grandnephew also employed by the company, Alan Ruck as Connor, Logan's eldest child, and Hiam Abbass as Marcia Roy, Logan's wife. The series also features Peter Friedman, Natalie Gold, and Rob Yang, with Dagmara Domińczyk, Arian Moayed, and J. Smith-Cameron in recurring roles, before being promoted to the main cast.
Succession has received critical acclaim and, among its accolades, won the British Academy Television Award for Best International Programme and the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama. Cox received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama, while Culkin has received two nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film. The series also received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series, and Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, winning for writing in 2019. In 2020, the series received eighteen nominations at the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards including those for actors Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong, Kieran Culkin, Matthew Macfadyen, Nicholas Braun, Sarah Snook, James Cromwell, Cherry Jones, and Harriet Walter.
Premise
Succession follows the Roy family, owners of media conglomerate Waystar Royco. The family patriarch, Logan Roy, has experienced a decline in health. His four children – removed oldest son Connor, power-hungry Kendall, irreverent Roman, and politically savvy Siobhan – all with varying degrees of connection to the company, begin to prepare for a future without their father, and each begins vying for prominence within the company.Cast and characters
Main
- Brian Cox as Logan Roy, the founder of media and entertainment conglomerate Waystar Royco. He is a brash leader whose primary focus is his company rather than his four children Connor, Kendall, Siobhan, and Roman. He is married to Marcia, his third wife.
- Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy, the second son of Logan Roy, from his second marriage. The presumed natural successor to Logan, he is struggling to prove his worth to his father amid bungling major deals and struggling with substance abuse, as well as struggling to maintain a relationship with his estranged wife, Rava.
- Sarah Snook as Siobhan "Shiv" Roy, the youngest child and only daughter of Logan Roy from his second marriage. She is a political fixer, working for a time for presidential candidate Gil Eavis, whose political views clash with Waystar. She is married to Tom Wambsgans.
- Kieran Culkin as Roman Roy, the third and youngest son of Logan Roy, from his second marriage. Roman is immature, does not take responsibilities seriously, and often finds himself lacking the common sense his father requires of him. He is frequently at odds with his brother Kendall, with whom he is often vying for power and attention from their father.
- Matthew Macfadyen as Tom Wambsgans, the husband of Shiv Roy and a Waystar executive who is promoted from heading the amusement park and cruise division to running the global news outlet. He is a people-pleaser and enjoys his proximity to the Roy family's power but is frequently dismissed by the Roys, and uses underlings like Greg to wield his power.
- Nicholas Braun as Greg Hirsch, the grandnephew of Logan Roy and grandson of Ewan Roy. Greg is unfamiliar with the rough terrain he must navigate to win over Logan, and finds himself indentured to Tom Wambsgans in his quest for an in at Waystar and with the family.
- Alan Ruck as Connor Roy, the eldest son of Logan Roy, from his first marriage. Connor is mostly removed from the corporate drama, preferring to defer to his siblings on most firm-related matters. In season 2, he announces his bid for President of the United States.
- Hiam Abbass as Marcia Roy, the third wife of Logan Roy. Born and raised in Beirut, she is often at odds with Logan's children, whose trust she has yet to earn. She has a son, Amir, from her first marriage.
- Peter Friedman as Frank Vernon, the COO of Waystar Royco and long time confidant of Logan Roy. Frank is a member of Logan's old guard on whom Kendall frequently relies to help win back Logan's favor.
- Natalie Gold as Rava Roy, the estranged wife of Kendall Roy.
- Rob Yang as Lawrence Yee, the founder of media website Vaulter that is acquired by Waystar Royco.
- Dagmara Domińczyk as Karolina, Head of PR for Waystar Royco and a member of Waystar Royco's legal team.
- Arian Moayed as Stewy Hosseini, a financier and friend of Kendall's who becomes a member of Waystar Royco's board.
- J. Smith-Cameron as Gerri Kellman, general counsel to Waystar Royco who is also godmother to Siobhan and a mentor to Roman.
Recurring
- Mary Birdsong as Marianne Hirsch, Logan's niece and Greg's mother.
- Molly Griggs as Grace, Roman's ex-girlfriend.
- Justine Lupe as Willa, Connor Roy's young girlfriend who aspires to be a playwright and is a former call girl.
- Scott Nicholson as Colin, Logan's body man.
- Swayam Bhatia as Sophie Roy, Kendall's daughter.
- Quentin Morales as Iverson Roy, Kendall's son who is autistic.
- David Rasche as Karl, Waystar Royco's chief financial officer and member of the company's legal team.
- Judy Reyes as Eva, a member of Waystar Royco's legal team and an executive producer at ATN, a news channel owned by Waystar Royco.
- Juliana Canfield as Jess Jordan, Kendall's assistant.
- Jake Choi as Tatsuya, an associate of Lawrence.
- Larry Pine as Sandy Furness, the owner of a rival media conglomerate who plots a hostile takeover of Waystar Royco with Kendall and Stewy.
- Ashley Zukerman as Nate Sofrelli, a political strategist and former romantic partner of Shiv's. He convinces her to work on the Eavis presidential campaign, reigniting their former affair.
- Mark Blum as Bill, the retiring head of Waystar Royco's Adventure Parks division.
- Eisa Davis as Joyce Miller, the former attorney general of New York elected to a seat in the United States Senate for whom Shiv serves as a political strategist.
- Peggy J. Scott as Jeane, Logan's secretary.
- James Cromwell as Ewan Roy, Logan's estranged older brother and Greg's grandfather who resides in Canada.
- Darius Homayoun as Amir, Marcia's son who announces at Thanksgiving dinner that he has been hired to head Waystar Royco's animation division in Europe.
- Eric Bogosian as Gil Eavis, a Sandersesque presidential candidate whom Nate introduces to Shiv. He is vocally opposed to Waystar Royco's attempted takeover of local news networks and becomes a target of their cable news network ATN because of it.
- Caitlin FitzGerald as Tabitha, Roman's girlfriend who had previously had a sexual encounter with Tom at his bachelor party.
- Harriet Walter as Caroline Collingwood, the second wife of Logan Roy and Kendall, Shiv, and Roman's mother.
- Jack Gilpin as Mr. Wambsgans, Tom's father.
- Kristin Griffith as Mrs. Wambsgans, Tom's mother and a highly respected attorney in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area.
- Danny Huston as Jamie Laird, a banker and financier who advises Logan during the proxy battle against Stewy and Sandy, as well as during his attempted acquisition of PMG.
- Jeannie Berlin as Cyd Peach, head of Waystar Royco's news network who butts heads with Tom after his promotion.
- Jessica Hecht as Michelle Pantsil, a writer researching an unauthorized biography of Logan.
- Holly Hunter as Rhea Jarrell, the CEO of Pierce Media Group who aligns herself with Logan during the attempted acquisition.
- Cherry Jones as Nan Pierce, the de facto head of the Pierce family and majority owner of PMG.
- Annabelle Dexter-Jones as Naomi Pierce, Nan Pierce's niece who suffers from substance abuse and falls for Kendall.
- Fisher Stevens as Hugo Baker, a senior comms exec in charge of managing a scandal involving Brightstar cruise lines.
- Babak Tafti as Eduard Asgarov, an Azerbaijani billionaire pursued by Roman for his money and ties to the Azerbaijani sovereign wealth. Co-owns the Heart of Midlothian Football Club with Roman.
Guest
- Parker Sawyers as Alessandro Daniels, an executive of Waystar Royco present during the Vaulter acquisition meetings.
- Annika Boras as Anna Newman, an on-air personality at ATN, the news network owned by Waystar Royco, that Kendall takes to the family's annual charity event, the Roy Endowment Creative New York ball.
- David Patrick Kelly as Paul Chambers, a member of Waystar Royco's board that votes against a vote of no confidence in regards to Logan.
- Griffin Dunne as Dr. Alon Parfit, a corporate therapist hired to work with the Roy family as Logan attempts to rehabilitate their public image.
Episodes
Season 1 (2018)
Season 2 (2019)
Production
Development
On June 6, 2016, it was announced that HBO had given the production a pilot order. The episode was written by Jesse Armstrong and directed by Adam McKay. Executive producers for the pilot include Armstrong, McKay, Will Ferrell, Frank Rich, and Kevin Messick. On May 16, 2017, it was announced that HBO had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. The previously announced creative team continued their involvement as the series entered into production.On November 17, 2017, it was reported that Nicholas Britell would serve as the series' composer. On April 26, 2018, it was announced that the series would premiere on June 3, 2018. On June 11, 2018, HBO renewed the series for a second season. On May 23, 2019, it was announced that the second season would premiere on August 11, 2019.
On August 20, 2019, HBO renewed the series for a third season. On March 28, 2020, HBO announced the third season's production was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.