‘Succession’ Star Brian Cox on Dealing With Logan’s Unserious Kids
Spoiler Alert
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Succession Season 4, Episode 2, “Rehearsal.”]
Succession continues to surprise in its final season as Roy patriarch Logan (Brian Cox) actually sat down for a genuine conversation with his children amid eldest Connor’s (Alan Ruck) disastrous wedding rehearsal celebration.
On the eve of Waystar Royco’s sale to Gojo, Logan’s plans are spoiled as Shiv (Sarah Snook), Kendall (Jeremy Strong), and Roman (Kieran Culkin) are weighing the idea of squeezing more money out of Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård). The move would be aided by Sandi (Hope Davis) and Stewy (Arian Moayed), but when Logan catches wind of the potential dealings, he swoops in to try and speak reason.
While Connors helps Logan ambush the three youngest Roy siblings, he does his best to make amends, even apologizing for past actions (as well as addressing recent ones like advising Tom [Matthew Macfadyen] in his divorce) and offering a warning that their scheme to push Matsson will backfire tremendously. Logan says he loves them but that they’re “not serious people,” in a moment that Cox recalls as one of his favorites. “That to me is the thing that sums up the whole dilemma of Succession. He needs serious people. They ain’t serious, and that’s the big problem.”
(Credit: HBO)
Below, Cox opens up about Logan’s dealings with his kids, his character’s state of mind, and what could be next as the fourth season continues.
What is Logan’s state of mind this season? He seems more sad than grumpy between his birthday in the premiere to this pleading moment with his kids.
Brian Cox: Logan’s Achilles heel, I say time and time again is he loves his kids and he’s not getting very much back from them. Only treachery and betrayal. And we saw that, I mean he got off when his son finally betrayed him, and he thought, “oh, I never knew he had it in him, but what an idiot.” Now it’s got to a sort of wariness and slight sadness of, “oh God, it’s exhausting. It’s so exhausting.” These children, they keep beating the same tambourine even though all the bells are broken on it, but they’re banging away at the same tambourine and all they have to do is be responsible and be serious.
And they’re not being serious. They’re not being serious about what is a very important thing for him. His raison d’être in his life is his business. What he’s created. Now, what is created for me —Brian Cox — is the antithesis of everything I believe in. But at the same time, from the point of view of me as an actor, I need to go down that road and I need to follow his path because that’s his path. I’m not in the judgment business. That’s something we can’t do. We play, we don’t judge.
(Credit: HBO)
We saw a bit more of Logan’s work relationship with Tom in this episode. Relationship with Tom?
Well, I think Tom has shown a sense of honor. [When Logan when had his] UTI, Tom showed great kindness and consideration while everybody was laughing at him. Tom took him to the bathroom. And that simple gesture alone validated Tom in Logan’s eyes. Suddenly Tom was somebody who was considerable, somebody he had dismissed previous to that, but there was a kindness and he acknowledged that kindness. That’s the genius of the writing. It’s not black and white. It’s all kinds of other shades. And it’s a joy to play. I think we’re gonna see Tom in a very interesting light.
The kids are also in the midst of securing the Pierce acquisition. Can you tease how Logan may play a role in that moving forward?
Well, they beat them, but they’re gonna make a mess of it, you know, that’s the problem. The Pierce thing… Logan didn’t have much luck with them because he doesn’t believe in all that inherited family stuff. This a family business that has been going on for a hundred years. And he knows that when he’s gone, he just wants the business to be secure, but he knows that he’s got no more control over it. So he is prepared to let that control go on the proviso that it’s secure what they do after that, it’s up to them. That’s their problem. But he wants that business secure. And if he does die, he wants that business to feel that at least there’s something constructive about it.
Logan shows he’s proud in unconventional ways. Like you mentioned, he was happy Kendall proved himself to be a “killer,” but was he proud they outbid him for Pierce?
Well, there’s an element of improvement and he acknowledges the element of improvement. He won’t dwell on it because they betrayed him on so many levels. He’s tired and he’s feeling very lonely. It’s been an onslaught, the whole thing for four seasons of being all against Logan. He’s been the target, and he’s saying “gimme a f**kng break, for Christ’s sake”. [They’re] constantly at me, time and time again. And that’s the great tension of the season. That’s also the great genius of Jesse [Armstrong] and his writers.
Succession, Season 4, Sundays, 9/8c, HBO and HBO Max
