‘Succession’ creator dissects his process for picking Logan Roy’s successor

Warning: this article contains spoilers for Succession season 4, episode 10

Succession ended its run by resolving the GoJo deal story plot and touching on the Roy siblings disappointment with the fact that none of them will have a piece of Waystar Royco. This ending left mixed reactions amongst viewers, but showrunner Jesse Armstrong has a reason why the ending was the way it is.

Episode 10, titled “With Eyes Open” led to a final conflict amongst the Roy siblings, as Shiv has to give the final vote to dictate the future of their father’s company. Variety reported that Armstrong revealed that the events that unfolded in Succession‘s finale were “a natural choice” in a Succession featurette on Max titled “Controlling the Narrative.” Armstrong stated that he felt that it was right that Tom became the successor of Logan Roy’s company and that power comes from the people you surround yourself with.

“The idea of Tom being the eventual successor, that had been something that I thought was the right ending for quite a while now. Even though he’s not exactly the most powerful monarch you’ll ever meet — his power comes from Matsson. Those figures that drift upwards and make themselves amenable to powerful people are around.”

Armstrong also shared details about the fate of the Roy siblings since they’ve lost what their father has built. He believes that Kendall, Roman, and Shiv could still carry on with their lives, even if it’s not ideal nor if it’s similar to what their father achieved.

“I thought about all their stories. You know, they don’t end. They will carry on. But it’s sort of where this show loses interest in them because they’ve lost what they wanted, which was to succeed — which, you know, was this prize that their father held out.

One piece of information that he shared was Kendall’s future. The series ends with the eldest Roy sibling looking out onto the ocean after his perceived ultimate failure. Armstrong believes he could start over and build a new company from scratch. However, he doesn’t believe it could reach the same levels of success his father built.

“For Kendall, this will never stop being the central event of his life, the central days of his life, central couple of years of his life. Maybe he could go on and start a company, or do a thing. But the chances of him achieving the sort of corporate status that his dad achieved are very low. And I think that will mark his whole life.”

Succession‘s season finale was filled with emotional drama since it’ was the Roy siblings’ final chance to save the company their father built. If you missed the final episode, the series finale, and the rest of the show in its entirety is available to stream on Max.