Brian Cox has claimed his character was written out of Succession too soon, with the star saying he took it as a form of rejection.

The actor, 76, played Logan Roy in HBO drama and Brian insists the decision to kill Logan off in the third episode of the fourth and final series of the show was ‘ultimately too early’.

While Brian admits Logan’s end was done ‘in a pretty brilliant way’, he added he took it ‘wrongly, as a form of rejection’.

Speaking on BBC Two’s Amol Rajan Interviews, Brian said: ‘I was fine with it ultimately, but I did feel a little bit rejected. 

‘You know, I felt a little bit, oh, all the work I’ve done and finally I’m going to, you know, end up as an ear on a carpet of a plane.’

Brian told how he filmed several funeral scenes more than a year and a half ago and was told he was no longer needed to film false scenes of Logan service.

Show bosses had planned to film were planning to film false scenes so paparazzi would not suspect it was Logan who had died.

Despite being told he would not be required, Brian went ‘on [his] own volition’ to the location where the funeral was being filmed.

And Brian thinks Logan could actually still be alive, with the star telling Amol: ‘I still believe this, maybe Logan isn’t dead.

‘This could be part of an elaborate ruse to find out. Well, if you think about it, from Logan’s point of view, he has to find out, how are his children going to behave when he dies, what will then happen? 

‘And the only way to do that is to fake his death and actually, at some distant point he’s observing the chaos that is following.’

When asked if he is saying Logan does in fact come back from the dead, Brian respnded: ‘No […] I’m just saying that could have been a supposition.’

It comes after Succession fans descended into a frenzy after learning Sunday’s blockbuster funeral episode featured a surprise cameo.

The penultimate episode of the HBO series saw Logan Roy’s family come together to attend his funeral following his death six episodes earlier.

Among those in attendance were many of Logan’s former mistresses, also sat in a row ready to pay their respects.

Fans were quick to notice that one of the mistresses was being played by star Brian Cox’s real wife Nicole Ansari-Cox.

In the episode, Nicole took on the role of Sally-Ann, who was introduced by Lady Caroline (Harriet Walter).

The apt cameo of Brian’s real-life spouse as one of his many exes sent fans into a frenzy, with many flooding social media with their reactions.

One tweeted: ‘OMG so Sally-Anne *is* Brian Cox’s real wife!’ while another added: ‘The fact they snuck Brian Cox’ real life wife into #Succession as one of his side pieces is brilliant.’

One added: ‘I am actually obsessed that they got Nicole Ansari (Brian Cox’s wife) to play Sally-Anne.’ 

‘Brian Cox’s real life wife playing Sally-Anne had me screaming,’ one fan added.

In the penultimate episode of Succession, Season Four Episode Nine saw the stars of the show convene for Logan’s funeral.

Sunday’s much-anticipated series finale will finally bring an answer to the burning question: Who will land Logan’s vast fortune?

Earlier this year, Brian revealed he and wife Nicole renewed their wedding vows in a surprise Vegas ceremony.

Speaking on Live With Kelly and Ryan, the actor revealed: ‘We’d actually been apart for a while — she’d been traveling — and then we sat down and we said, ‘Where do we go from here? Do we finish or do we go on? And we thought, ”Well let’s go on and get married”.’

Across social media, users lauded James Cromwell’s magnificent performance as Ewan, and the cold, hard truths he laid out in his eulogy to Logan.

‘That speech Ewan gave at Logan’s funeral,’ one user said. ‘Chills. James Cromwell is a master at his craft. The fact that he did that performance while going through long-COVID is extraordinary. Wonderfully written by Jesse Armstrong.’

Another used said, ‘The Roy sibs aside, let no one neglect the magnificent one-speech performance of James Cromwell as Logan’s brother killing him a second time in his funeral speech,’ adding that ‘the writing also was mind-wrecking.’

One user said that Ewan’s speech was ‘one of the BEST scenes in all of Succession,’ while another said that Cromwell ‘DOMINATED that scene, and it was clear that everyone (especially the kids) got to know more about Logan in death than they ever did in life.’

Said one user: ‘Logan’s brother, Ewan (played by James Cromwell) humanized Logan, telling of the abuse he suffered as a child. But he did not excuse his behavior as an adult. He gave the full measure of the man.’

The full interview, Brian Cox: Amol Rajan Interviews, is on BBC Two on Thursday 25th May at 7pm and BBC iPlayer.

Succession’s final episode will air on HBO on Sunday. It will air on Sky Atlantic in the UK on Monday. 

That’s how you silence your rival! LA Galaxy’s Riqui Puig and Tyler Boyd score two sensational goals to seal 2-0 win over enemy LAFC in El Trafico and reach the US Open Cup quarterfinals

• Ex-Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puig made amends for a first-half penalty miss 
• The Galaxy will either face the Colorado Rapids or Real Salt Lake in the quarters
• DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news 

By Alastair Talbot For Dailymail.Com

Published: 00:55 EDT, 24 May 2023 | Updated: 01:22 EDT, 24 May 2023

The massive merger between the Roy family’s Waystar Royco and Lukas Matsson’s (Alexander Skarsgard) GoJo is potentially hampered by a new Waystar acquisition in the sixth episode of Succession‘s fourth and final season.

The Roy children – Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin) and Shiv (Sarah Snook) are preparing for their company’s annual Investor Day, where it’s announced Waystar is acquiring Living Plus, a company Matsson has no interest in and could be trouble for the deal with Matsson

While Kendall and Roman were named the interim CEO’s after their father Logan’s (Brian Cox) surprising death, Shiv has been seen meeting with Matsson, with the possibility growing that she could have a much bigger role in the new company.

Shiv’s estranged husband Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) warns her in the show’s preview that she’s keeping all of her options open and to be careful.

Shiv also expresses her concern that her brothers could say anything they wanted at the Investor Day presentation.

The episode begins with a shot of Logan Roy filming something about the Living Plus real estate brand becoming part of their real estate division.

The director stops him and tells him to be ‘more upbeat’ for the video but Logan keeps pushing back at it.

We see Kendall watching the video as Logan screams at everyone around him, saying they are as, ‘useless as my f***ing idiot kids.’

Hugo (Fisher Stevens) apologizes for what Logan said, but Kendall says it’s ‘fine’ and that it’s like a ‘Valentine’s card,’ asking to watch the video again. 

Shiv is on her plane waiting for it to refuel when she’s joined by Lukas, who tells her he doesn’t want to pursue the acquisition of Living Plus.

He asks why they’re doing this since he doesn’t want Living Plus but Shiv says they didn’t want it to ‘look like we were just minding the shop until you came in,’ though he says that’s exactly what they’re doing. 

He says he doesn’t need it, adding, ‘You know how s****y and heartbreaking it is being locked up on a cruise? How about that, but you also get to stay in the same f***ing place the whole time?” I’m not gonna pursue, so why would you announce?’

Matsson says he hates it but he likes that he has Shiv on the ‘inside’ that ‘gets’ him but Shiv says, ‘Maybe I hate you.’ 

‘Maybe I love my brothers very much,’ she says, and Matsson adds, ‘Oh, by the way, did they mention that they went totally f***ing mental on me,’ adding it was, ‘totally unprofessional.’

She adds, ‘You know, I’m gonna tell my brothers everything you said,’ and he adds, ‘Cool. Do that. Nothing to hide, nothing I wouldn’t tell them myself.’

Back at Waystar HQ, Kendall and Roman warn the senior team that they have some concerns about the deal and Matsson taking over.

When they tell everyone about their conflicts with Matsson, Kendall and Roman are alone with Shiv as she realizes that her brothers are trying to tank the deal.

‘The plan was always we were getting out clean. Doing Pierce, buying Pierce together. What the f**k happened?’ Shiv asks.

‘Shiv, maybe we can keep it, and Pierce, all of us,’ Kendall says, as Shiv adds, ‘Oh, man, you are f***ing c**ksuckers.’

They both apologize and insists they wouldn’t have ‘d***ed you over’ as they all hug.

Shiv schedules a meeting room when she starts crying, as her estranged husband Tom enters the room.

She tells him, ‘Yes. I’m just very busy. And… I have found I am too busy, what with my dad. And so, uh, Sarah has sometimes found me somewhere so that I can…Have a moment to cry.’

Tom adds, ‘You’re scheduling your grief?’ but she tells him to f**k off but instead he gives her a hug and they start kissing.

Kendall and Roman read a statement their father made before he passed which said they will not be at Investor Day. 

They start talking about Matsson adding they don’t think he has any ‘juice’ past 192, meaning $192 per share for the merger. 

Roman meets with Joy (Annabeth Gish), the head of Waystar Studios, who is concerned that ATN has a ‘direct line’ to Mencken and their coverage on him.

Roman says he plans on dumping a ton of money into the network and wants the ‘hit machine’ to keep pumping… but she doesn’t seem to be on the same page with Roman… so he fires her.

She tells him this is a mistake but he’s clearly made up his mind before he leaves the room.

Kendall is meeting with his team for prepping Investor Day, telling them he wants them to build a Living Plus house in a day, which is quite the daunting task.

Roman meets up with Kendall, who tells him has some thoughts about Investor Day.

Tom is seen mingling at a mixer reception for Investor Day when he meets up with Shiv, who asks him who he likes at the party, who he’d hook up with.

Tom apologizes for ‘f***ing you up,’ but Shiv laughs, saying he barely scratched the surface and she was ‘f***ed up’ long before they met.

She asks if they want to play ‘Bitey’ a game where they each bite each other and see who can take it.

They each bite each other’s forearms, but Shiv relents first, joking, ‘Tom Wambsgans, finally making me feel something.’

Kendall talks with Roman and Greg (Nicholas Braun), saying that if they bump the price up to $192 a share, they can drive Matsson out.

Kendall tells Greg to go find Jess as Roman says he’s happy with trying to force Matsson out of the deal.

Roman admits he didn’t see his father’s death coming, adding there should be another way around death.

Gerri (J. Smith-Cameron) pulls Roman aside he tells her that he fired Joy, which Gerri has a problem with.

‘Roman, you absolutely cannot fire a studio executive without speaking to Legal and HR…,’ Gerri says.

Roman says they might ‘kick her up to International or she walks and takes a fat f***ing producer deal.’ 

He tells Gerri to clean everything up but she says, ‘Joy has a lot of relationships. She has a lot of friends. 

She says, ‘And you are weak monarch in a dangerous interregnum,’ but Roman adds, ‘This is something that Dad would have done, and you know it.’

‘Oh, well, maybe. But you’re not your dad,’ Gerri says, which clearly stings Roman, and he suggests maybe he’ll fire her too.

‘Sure, I’m not on the kill list,’ Gerri says, adding Mattson will be very angry but Roman clearly doesn’t care.

‘Be serious, you’re minding shop. Roman. You cannot win against the money. The money is gonna wash you away. Your dad knew. Tech is coming. We are over,’ she says. 

‘This is a simple business decision. You are not good at your job. Maybe Dad did know. Maybe I’m firing you for a list of failures I choose not to outline right now, but including a failure to close off our liabilities vis-à-vis claims against Waystar Cruises in a timely manner. That’ll play nicely. Let’s do that,’ Roman says.

Gerri insists, ‘I am good at my job,’ but Roman says, ‘Shall we get started on the paperwork? You wanna do it yourself, or do you want me to get somebody a bit sharper?’

Roman goes back to Kendall and tells her he fired Joy and he fired Gerri too, but he thinks maybe they should ‘roll back’ firing Gerri. 

‘F**k it, bro. Why not? Drop her in the end zone. I mean, look at you. Who are you gonna fire next? I mean, fire Frank, fire Karl, f***ing eat Greg, and fire me, man,’ Kendall jokes.

Meanwhile, Shiv is with Tom, asking him, ‘You’re all in on Matsson, huh?’ 

Tom responds, ‘Yeah. I guess. I mean, your brothers hate me, and you hate me, and you’ll fire me. So, yeah. I don’t entirely… Entirely know what to do.’

He jokes, ‘Still keeping all your options open, honey? Yeah? You should be careful with that.

She adds, ‘Wow! Truth bombs from… From the phony man,’ as he says, ‘I think… I think I want you. I think I would like this back.’

‘Well then, you shouldn’t have betrayed me,’ Shiv says.

Tom adds, ‘I’ve been thinking a little bit about money… And how to get money, and how to keep money. And you didn’t ask me in. Shiv, you kept me out. And I always agreed to all the compartments, but it seemed to me that I was gonna be caught between you and your dad. And I really, really, really love my career and my money. And, you know, the suits, and my watches, and… Yeah. Sure, I know. I like nice things, I do. And if you think that’s shallow, why don’t you throw out all your stuff for love. Throw out your necklaces and your jewels for a date at a three-star Italian. Yeah? Come and live with me in a trailer park. Yeah? Are you coming?’

She jokes, ‘Well, I’d follow you anywhere for love, Tom Wambsgans,’ as they both laugh.

Greg is watching the video Logan made about Living Plus before he died, but he tells the video tech that he wants him to doctor the video to say ‘double the earnings’ instead of ‘a significant boost.’ 

Greg gets angry, telling him, ‘Just f***in’ make it happen. -Make it happen. Okay. Or I get in trouble. And I don’t wanna get in trouble. I wanna get in the good books. So, you help me get in the good books.’

Kendall arrives to the presentation, finding the house that they are making but it’s not quite right.

‘He’s got that gleam in his eye. This is not good. It’s gonna be very f***ing messy. -You’re out of control, he’s out of control,’ Shiv says.

She asks, ‘Should we pull the plug on today?’ Roman insists, ‘It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s a decent play, I think.’

Shiv adds, ‘I love him, but he cracks under pressure, and I think we should protect him. We should stop this.’,

Roman goes to see Kendall, who has jackets made up for Roman, telling him they shouldn’t go ahead with this, or at least postpone.

‘Maybe we just dump it on fucking Ray. I mean, look, it’s his division, and… You know… But maybe not do the whole… this idea.

Roman adds this whole thing has been Kendall’s vision and he thinks he might ‘f**k it.’

Roman tells Kendall he will ‘kill it’ and tells him to ‘break that leg,’ as Kendall goes out to the stage when he’s interrupted by Karl (David Rasche).

He says he wants to get some ‘visibility’ because he heard there have been tweaks in his ‘arena,’ but Kendall tells him it’s not a good time.

‘Oh, really? Well, listen to me. I took a lot of s**t from your dad because we’ve been through the mill. But I’ve been the CFO of major public companies for over two decades, and I know a thing or two about a thing or two. And if you f**k up his deal, or you try to stand up numbers that I am not comfortable with, -I swear to God,’ Karl says.

Kendall says, ‘Easy. CEO. CFO,’ but Karl just laughs, ‘What? You gonna fire your chief financial officer a week in? Your dad just gone? You’d be f***ing toast.’

‘You have my d**k in your hand, Ken. But I’ve got yours in mine. So let’s get real. If you say anything that I don’t like up there or make me look foolish, I’ll f***ing squeal,’ Karl says.

Kendall gets up on stage, clearly nervous, before he shares a video of his father, as everyone bemoans his ‘amateur hour’ antics.

Kendall announces the acquisition of Living Plus, ‘Our brand-turboed Living Plus real estate communities are going to guarantee three absolute essentials. One, total peace of mind. Discreet community protection and enhanced home monitoring. You’ll have your keys but, uh, yeah, you won’t need ’em. Crime-free, hassle-free, and respectful. Two, fun.’

Kendall adds Living Plus will offer, ‘Hyperlocal news, movie-themed events, advance screenings, ATN debate and discussions, multimedia events from cooking to premium access sports. We’re talking integrated, everyday character IP life enhancement. Maybe a director will swing by with a rough cut. Stars certainly will. Movies, shows, rides, experiences to enjoy at home or with the family, who will not want to stop visiting. We can even tell them you’re out if you need a break.’

Shiv gets a call from Matsson who asks Shiv if he can stop Kendall’s presentation because he doesn’t like it.

Kendall plays the doctored video from his late father, which Greg seemingly convinced the tech guy to alter Logan’s words, saying they will double the parks division’s revenue.

The team reveals the buzz is surprisingly good about Kendall’s presentation, though they learn Matsson has made a holocaust joke on social media.

‘Well, uh, I’m not gonna fave it,’ Kendall says to a smattering of laughs from the crowd.

‘Everybody knows here, you guys all know we’re looking at a deal with Lukas. And, you know, I have so much time and respect for what he’s built. Now, personally, I wouldn’t have said that. And, uh, apologies, sincere apologies for any offense caused. Uh, you know, he’s, uh… He’s very European.’

‘If and when we complete the deal and he gets into the incredible opportunity this product presents, I think he’ll be tweeting something different,’ Kendall says.

Shiv talks with Matsson on the phone, telling him, ‘Maybe you’re giving this too much attention than it deserves?’

Lukas insists, ‘I know what I’m doing,’ but she tells him to back off, when Kendall goes back to the team and learns Matsson had deleted the tweet.

While they all celebrate, Roman leaves the room, seemingly troubled.

Roman is seen in the car, playing another doctored clip from his late father’s old video, where he says, ‘I wanna make what I think is a fairly historic announcement. I’m convinced that Roman Roy has a micro d**k and always gets it wrong.’

Tom is driving Shiv, who tells him, ‘I think, uh, if we’re thinking of hosting, I can’t… I can’t get into it. Any of our s**t, yeah? I think it has to be, if this is okay with you, strictly party and strategy.’

Tom adds, ‘Uh-huh. I can’t help it if I find strategy sexy, though. I do. I really do,’ as Shiv smiles to herself.

The episode ends with Kendall stripping to his shorts and dives into the sea.

The preview teases a ‘tailgate party’ at Shiv and Tom’s house – the event they alluded to hosting – their first since Logan passed, with Matsson making a surprise appearance. 

Succession creator Jesse Armstrong first confirmed that Season 4 will be the end of the show in a wide-ranging interview with The New Yorker, where he was asked why he decided to confirm the final season before it debuted. 

‘One, we could have said it as soon as I sort of decided, almost when we were writing it, which I think would be weird and perverse,’ Armstrong began.

‘We could have said it at the end of the season. I quite like that idea, creatively, because then the audience is just able to enjoy everything as it comes, without trying to figure things out, or perceiving things in a certain way once they know it’s the final season,’ he added.

‘But, also, the countervailing thought is that we don’t hide the ball very much on the show. I feel a responsibility to the viewership, and I personally wouldn’t like the feeling of, “Oh, that’s it, guys. That was the end.” I wouldn’t like that in a show. I think I would like to know it is coming to an end,’ he clarified.

He added, ‘And, also, there’s a bunch of prosaic things, like it might be weird for me and the cast as we do interviews. It’s pretty definitively the end, so then it just might be uncomfortable having to sort of dissemble like a politician for ages about it. Hopefully, the show is against bulls**t, and I wouldn’t like to be bulls****ing anyone when I was talking about it.’

Advertising giant S4 Capital drawing up succession plans to replace its founder – the legendary Sir Martin Sorrell

By Luke Barr, Financial Mail On Sunday

Published: 16:51 EDT, 29 April 2023 | Updated: 16:51 EDT, 29 April 2023

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