Note: The following contains spoilers for “Succession” Season 4, Episode 2
The ending of “Succession” Season 4 Episode 2 saw Roman Roy (Kieran Culkin) go crawling back to Logan (Brian Cox), but for Culkin, the move makes a lot of sense.
Following the events of the Season 3 finale in which Logan cut Roman, Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and Shiv (Sarah Snook) out of the company after they came for his head, Season 4 began with the kids really embracing being on their own. The second episode of this final season saw the children even using some significant leverage against Logan to potentially delay his sale of Waystar Royco to GoJo in order to squeeze more money out of Matsson (Alexander Skarsgard).
But, sensing the kids had real leverage, Logan confronted his children in the second episode and even offered an apology for his actions – albeit motivated by trying to convince them to get out of his way.
The episode ended with Roman showing up at Logan’s house, unbeknownst to Kendall and Shiv, and with Logan asking Roman to join him and head up ATN.
“I think Logan, he went after Roman for the reason that he’s probably the most likely to get him on his side,” Culkin explains in a behind-the-scenes video about the episode. “But I also believe that he is the most like Logan in some ways. If there is anybody that he could pass over the company or could teach, it could be Roman.”
Cox says in the same video that Logan isn’t merely using Roman because he’s vulnerable, but because he respects his youngest child.
“He’s exhausted every element of his other children. Roman is quite smart about things, he’s got a certain skillset about him which is, I think, undeniable but we don’t always see it,” Cox says. “And he knows that Roman is raw, and I think he has great respect for Roman’s rawness.”
The other factor, of course, is craving Dad’s love, something Culkin infused into his performance.
“Being by dad’s side, that’s always been a comfortable place for Roman,” he explains. “When Logan let’s you in, it’s like the sunshine’s on you. And even though he left us in the dark, cuts us out, we’re trying to make our own life and that’s fine, but just seeing him and feeling like there’s a little invite into the sunshine is just really appealing.”
