Succession centers in on a global mega-corporation called Waystar RoyCo (based loosely on Disney) and the Roy family that runs it, who might also evoke parallels to other well-known real-world dynasties. Following the declining health of Logan Roy, the pater familias played by Brian Cox, the company’s heir apparent Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) sees himself challenged for succession by his siblings Roman (Kieran Culkin, yes, he’s Macaulay’s younger brother), Connor (Alan Ruck), and sister Shivy (Sarah Snook).
The writing of this HBO-produced series is sharp, the humor biting, and anarchy abundant, but watching Succession feels like a vice: it’s a guilty sneak-peek into the privileged but scary world of the mega-rich, making you a spectator of family dysfunction. Guilty also because you constantly find yourself rooting for people and causes, that are actually pretty awful. In addition to writing and wit, the cast and characters are all amazing, but watch out for Cousin Greg!
"The stakes are raised and the manners deranged, and its pitiless satire of a powerful family-a pack of wonderfully awful people invented by Jesse Armstrong-blossoms as a dark farce of American capitalism."
— Troy Patterson
"Succession is a funny, incisive portrait of the dynamics within a well-off family, but it's also a cautionary tale about how dicey and unethical it is to employ too many relatives."
— Jen Chaney
Follow the lives of the Roy family as they contemplate their future once their aging father begins to step back from the media and entertainment conglomerate they control.
Golden Globes
8 nominations
BAFTA
2 nominations
SAG Awards
1 win, 1 nomination
DGA
1 nomination
WGA
1 win, 3 nominations
My only problem with this show is that there isn’t enough of it (yet). I ate up the first seasons in what feels like a day. All the characters are crazy but easy to love, the script is perfect, and the actors are top notch. If you haven’t watched it yet, I’m jealous.
One of the best TV shows of the last decade.