“Succession” fans better enjoy upcoming Season 4, because its going to be the last for the beloved HBO series, according to creator Jesse Armstrong.
Armstrong told The New Yorker in an interview published Thursday that he has made the “tortured” decision to end the TV saga of the highly dysfunctional, super-powerful Roy family with Season 4, which returns March 26.
“There’s a promise in the title of ‘Succession.’ I’ve never thought this could go on forever,” Armstrong said. “The end has always been kind of present in my mind. From Season 2, I’ve been trying to think: Is it the next one, or the one after that, or is it the one after that?”
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Armstrong said he met with his writing team in late 2021 and discussed various end scenarios.
“We could do a couple of short seasons, or two more seasons. Or we could go on for ages and turn the show into something rather different, and be a more rangy, freewheeling kind of fun show, where there would be good weeks and bad weeks,” said Armstrong. “Or we could do something a bit more muscular and complete, and go out sort of strong. And that was definitely always my preference.”
Armstrong admitted: “I feel deeply conflicted” and “sad” about the decision.
“I feel like I’ve done the best work I can do,” he added. “And HBO has been generous and would probably have done more seasons, and they have been nice about saying, ‘It’s your decision.’ That’s nice, but it’s also a responsibility in the end. It feels quite perverse to stop doing it.”
HBO media representatives declined to comment on the Armstrong interview, but confirmed the sentiments were accurate.
‘Succession’ Season 4 trailer
HBO released the official trailer for the show’s final season Thursday.
With its cast including Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong, Nicholas Braun, Kieran Culkin, Matthew Macfadyen and Sarah Snook, “Succession” has won 13 Emmy awards, including best drama series twice (2020, 2022).
Armstrong knocked back the idea of a “Succession” reboot in the future saying, “I do think that this succession story that we were telling is complete.”
But he did not rule out a successor to “Succession.”
“Maybe there’s another part of this world we could come back to, if there was an appetite?” Armstrong said. “So that is another true feeling.”
