Regular director Mark Mylod may have given us a big clue as to who will end up on top at Waystar Royco.
**WARNING – POTENTIAL MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE SUCCESSION FINALE**
As we approach the Succession finale, one thought is on everyone’s mind – who is going to end up on top at Waystar Royco?
It’s the question posed by the series’ title, and all four seasons have seen the Roy children, other family members and those within the company jockeying for position.
Well, Mark Mylod, a frequent director on the series who was behind both the most recent episode, Church and State, and is behind the finale, may have given a serious clue as to how things will shake down.
Speaking with Vanity Fair, Mylod revealed that he has used a particular shot across all four seasons to indicate a character’s ride in ascendancy.
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Referring to the shot of Logan’s head from behind as he sits at the head of a table, which is seen in the title credits at the start of every episode, Mylod said: “It’s a frame that we found in season one, and it’s actually found its way into the title sequence, and it’s remained there.
“He owns the frame. That’s probably our most Logan-esque shot, if you like, because of the dynamics to the frame and to the composition.
“I will use that — a reverse shot following the character from behind, in quite a tight shot with the character completely centre-framed — as a recurring thing over four seasons, as a mark of that character’s ascendancy.”
Of course, it hasn’t taken long for fans to make their guesses based on Mylod’s statement – and it seems that most think he is referring to Jeremy Strong’s Kendall Roy.
One fan said on Twitter: “yeah there’s absolutely no way this is not about Kendall”.
Meanwhile, another added a compilation of shots from the series, a number of which show Kendall’s head from behind.
kendall backshots 👹 pic.twitter.com/r2TvUlIkgh https://t.co/3HLY3lpB0v
— alice (@germystrong) May 24, 2023
Another line from Mylod in the Vanity Fair interview, which could hint towards Kendall getting the top spot, saw him say that “the tragedy of Succession, for me, is that it’s entirely cyclical”.
He continued: “There is this circle of hell that these siblings are stuck in. ‘Can they ever escape the gravitational force and get free?’ is the question that I always ask myself. That’s always been the heart of the dramatic and character tension for me.”
As a culmination of this tragedy, could we perhaps see Kendall end up just like his father, the man whose shadow he has spent seasons trying to get out from under?
Of course, there are plenty of other options here – for one thing, Mylod may be attempting to misdirect viewers.
For another, he may be referring to a character ascending in that moment. It may be a technique he has used to show Kendall’s ascendancy in previous episodes, while the finale may see him employ the shot for a different character entirely.
Whatever the case, there is now only a matter of days to wait until we find out just how things end up for the Roy family…
Succession airs on Sky Atlantic and NOW with previous seasons available to watch on Sky and stream on NOW – sign up for Sky TV here.
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