In the Trump era, Succession on HBO hopes to win sympathy for the devil

Succession on HBO presents the drama of the ultra-wealthy Roy family. But in an era of rich people behaving badly, why should we care about these characters?

In a world of the 24-hour news cycle and social media ubiquity, it’s near impossible to go a day without hearing some juicy nugget about the 1%. Since the president of the United States is an ex-reality star and real estate mogul, the Trump family is a permanent fixture in the news on a daily – if not hourly – basis. Ever since the beginning of print media it has been this way. The Gettys had their day in the court of public opinion (and still remain a draw for the entertainment world); the Hearsts did too.

And now, HBO is introducing us to a new, fictional media dynasty.

In Succession, Logan Roy (the imitable Brian Cox) is the head of a media empire that’s spawned a film studio, a whole gaggle of TV networks, print publications, and even popular theme parks and cruises. (Think: Disney with a Fox News sensibility.) His four adult children, Connor (Alan Ruck), Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Siobhan (Sarah Snook), and Roman (Kieran Culkin) are simultaneously cowed and awed by Logan’s domineering presence and will do anything for his approval. When we meet the Roy family, Logan appears to be toying with the idea of handing down his dynasty to Kendall, but then all hell breaks loose, and it’s a free for all as to who might end up heading Waystar Royco – the family company.

While Kendall seems to be the most competent of his siblings, he still struggles with the ability to make concise and well-informed decisions on a large scale. The other three siblings seem adrift, making decisions based on childish whims and romantic dreams rather than logic. Why? Because they can. They’re all cushioned by a seemingly bottomless marshmallow cloud of money and power.

We see stories about these types of families in the news all the time – rich adult children whose money and power have afforded them opportunities that they definitely do not deserve – and the men who have brought Succession to the small screen appear to be capitalizing on the current media atmosphere. Entertainment mogul Adam McKay (Funny or Die, The Big Short) serves as the Executive Producer on the show, and Jesse Armstrong (In the Loop) is the creator. Yet, with widespread disdain for one-percenters, getting viewers to buy into the Roy’s saga might be prove difficult than in previous years. The series does aim to please by sprinkling in moments of genuinely funny comedy with the percolating drama, but given the characters position in the socioeconomic stratosphere, they’re not the easiest to root for.

Last week, we chatted with some of the cast of Succession about this very topic. We asked: In a world where rich people behaving badly seems to dominate the news cycle, why should we care about the plight of the Roy family?

Hiam Abass, the actress who plays Logan’s enigmatic third wife Marsha, thinks it all boils down to family. She said, “the dynamics between family members [in Succession] are just like the same as any other family for me. Of course the money and the power is what feeds them in their daily life, but at the end of it all they are human beings with feelings, and the dynamics are very resemblant in the way in which what motivates you to love one another or hate one another. The source of it is very much a human thing.”

Matthew MacFayden and Nicholas Braun seemed to agree with Ms. Abass. As Tom and Greg, MacFayden and Braun play relative outsiders to the Logan family. Greg is a distant relative (Logan’s great nephew) who bumbles his way into the fold after a mishap at one of the parks, and Tom is Siobhan Roy’s fiancee. Both of the men agreed that their roles in proximity to the family only have their characters wanting to grasp more power, influence, and money, and that the window into the lives of the Roy’s is almost intoxicating.

Braun stated, “I think you care about them because the show comments on what they are. They’re doing all these high-powered things, and we have a lot of people in the world right now doing very similar things, living similar lives, but I think the show gives you access into different parts of them that you don’t see in a news headline or a news story. It lets you see their vulnerable moments, their moments of failure, and moments of consideration, like what are they going to do about something? It’s not the deal that was made or not just the position that was gotten. It’s more than that.”

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Adding to Braun’s comments, MacFayden teased the “empires fall” aspect of the show, stating, “You’re not just seeing the bullish billionaire buying up business. You’re seeing all the family dynamics. And it’s a terribly dysfunctional, screwed up family. On the surface, they’re not attractive people, really. They’re a very small percentage of society and they wield an awful lot of power and they don’t always use it responsibly or kindly. So it’ll be interesting to see how it turns out for them.”

In the end, the draw of the series might just boil down to one timeless idea. In response to our question, Alan Ruck responded simply, “It’s fun to watch rich people suffer.” Indeed, Mr. Ruck. That principle is certainly what drives the 24 hour media cycle, and it might just be what drives Succession to ultimate success on HBO.

‘Succession’ airs Sunday nights at 10/9c on HBO.