In the tale of family drama among the rich, famous and poorly parented, Cox portrayed media mogul Logan Roy, whose sudden passing happened — in the actor’s words — “ultimately, too early” in the third episode of Season 4.
“I looked to it, wrongly, as a form of rejection,” Cox told the BBC this week. “I was fine with it ultimately, but I did feel a little bit rejected. I felt a little bit, ‘Oh, all the work I’ve done. And finally I’m going to end up as a New Yorker on a carpet of a plane.’”
On the show, three of Roy’s children said final goodbyes to their dad in a chaotic phone call as he laid lifeless in his private jet.
However, Cox praised “Succession” creator Jesse Armstrong for executing the plot line “brilliantly.”
“It was bold of Jesse, and that’s where Jesse’s great. I mean, he’s a genius. There’s no question he’s a writing genius,” Cox said in the interview.
Brian Cox said his character‘s death was necessary because “the show is about the succession.”
(Graeme Hunter)
When asked if he had the opportunity to tell Armstrong about his concerns, the British actor said there was “no point” in going down that road. “Especially with somebody like Jesse because he’s already made a plan, but he decided to make Logan die, ultimately, too early.”
Cox thinks it would have been more “appropriate” to delay his character’s death until the fifth or sixth episode.
Roy’s passing throws a curve into the main plot of the show, in which his children are competing for the top role at media conglomerate Waystar Royco.
Cox said fans told him that they wouldn’t watch the show after he departed, which he thinks is “unfortunate and unnecessary because the show is about the succession, so you need to see what’s happening in the wake of his demise. But, you know, I’m not the writer.”
The season finale — which is also the series finale, right? — will stream on Max (formerly HBO Max) and on HBO at 6 p.m. Pacific Time.
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