RoyCast

Critic Dan Schindel joins Gabi and Brendan to discuss three recent Broadway shows starring Succession actors: Jeremy Strong in An Enemy of the People, Sarah Snook in The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Kieran Culkin in Glengarry Glen Ross. The discussion also covers recent projects from other Succession collaborators as well as more upcoming shows and movies in the pipeline. *** Dan Schindel has been...

We're at the movies again as Gabi and Brendan discuss each of the nominees for Best Picture at the upcoming Academy Awards, whether any of these films are any good, and what they say about the particular present anxieties of the American movie industry. We also recap the last hurrah of Succession's awards tour.

Brendan, Gabi, and producer Dan reunite for a retrospective look at the complete run of Succession by attempting to rank every episode of the series. Discussion also covers the cast and crew's final tour of the awards circuit, the publication of the full shooting scripts, and unreconciled feelings about the series finale. ~~~ RoyCast is a passion project and we incur minor ongoing expenses related...

In the Succession series finale, "With Open Eyes", the closed-loop system begins another revolution as the Roys lose Waystar for good. Critic and author Adam Nayman returns to the RoyCast to discuss the anxieties and potential pitfalls of this final season, the insular quality of the ending, frustrated expectations, the uncertain fate of Mencken's Presidential bid, corporeal themes, eruptions of p...

At Logan’s funeral mass, Kendall and Shiv eulogize their father while rallying their forces, and Roman goes to pieces. Number one boy Vikram Murthi returns to the RoyCast to talk about “Church and State” as a classic penultimate episode, the show’s signature blend of dry humor and pathos, the direction and staging of Logan's funeral, the decline and fall of Roman, Kendall's bitter goodbyes to Rava...

It's election night in "America Decides", where the Roy family tragedy spills over into a national catastrophe of their own making. Brendan and Gabi sit down for a solo discussion that dives deep into the road to this inevitable outcome, the episode's atypical structure, the details of the show's electoral reality, lost votes in Milwaukee, Kendall's swing vote, Shiv's final humiliation, Roman's de...

At the Roys' pre-election party, the simmering tension between Shiv and Tom finally boils over. Critic and programmer Madeleine Wall returns to discuss the staging and writing of that climactic blowup, the paths leading both Shiv and Tom to finally unload their grievances, scorpions and frogs, Shiv's moment of recognition, the layers of the episode's premise and what it says about the show's polit...

Kendall's ambitions take flight as the Waystar team preps for a Hollywood investor presentation in "Living+". Returning guest Danny Bowes joins the RoyCast to discuss the episode's grim central conceit, its larger social and political implications, the season's tragic endgame coming into view, a standing ovation for director Lorene Scafaria, Kendall's moment of victory, model homes, Matsson's bad...

The Roys are off to bleed the Swede in "Kill List", where newly minted CE-bros Kendall and Roman face new developments in rival Lukas Matsson's bid to acquire Waystar. Critic and author Charles Bramesco joins the RoyCast to help work through the shifting power dynamics of the Gojo deal, revelations of Matsson's true character, Alexander Skarsgard's impressively off-putting performance, Roman's tur...

The Roy family gathers with Waystar colleagues and assorted hangers-on for a wake at Logan's home, where an ambiguous pencil stroke complicates their search for an interim CEO. Novelist, TV writer and showrunner Megan Abbott joins the RoyCast to discuss this week's installment of Dark Kendall: Waystar Rising, Shakespearean themes, Logan's true intentions for his heir, the revelation of Shiv's preg...

In “Connor’s Wedding”, Logan disrupts yet another blessed family event by unexpectedly passing away on his flight to Stockholm. Critic and programmer Maddie Whittle joins the RoyCast to break down the shocking yet mundane execution of this endgame development for the series, TV deaths, siblings bonding through crisis, the episode’s intricate direction by Mark Mylod, parallels to the demise of anot...

In “Rehearsal”, Succession’s final season begins to take shape as old habits die hard. John Semley joins the RoyCast to discuss the episode’s theme of regression, insularity versus circularity, the cable news landscape, new wrinkles in the Gojo deal, Connor’s blues, family lore, karaoke confrontations, desperadoes, the season’s use of NYC locations, Logan’s ATN visit, business bona fides, Ken’s ad...

In Succession's final season premiere, a merger-of-the-week plays out in sunny California with dark clouds on the horizon. Marie Bertonneau returns to the RoyCast to discuss Logan's troubling state of mind, Catholic perspectives on sin and redemption, the world's dullest birthday party, a rare glimpse into Colin's backstory, the show's relationship with the modern American right wing, the Comedy C...

Filmmaker and film production professor Alex Sherman joins Brendan for a discussion of the 2022 film Armageddon Time, starring Jeremy Strong, Anne Hathaway, Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Chastain, John Diehl, Banks Repeta, and Jaylin Webb. Before getting to the film itself, Brendan and Alex dive deep into the career of writer-director James Gray, whose films address themes of family, legacy, inheritanc...

The RoyCast reacts to Jesse Armstrong's unexpected announcement that Succession will end with its upcoming fourth season. Topics include: the five stages of grief, the dashed hopes for a fifth season, creative decisions, what we'll miss most, spinoffs, holiday specials, ill-advised predictions, what to expect from a final season, what NOT to expect, and the future of the podcast.

Brendan and Gabi reunite to discuss Succession at the 2022 Emmys, speculation about the upcoming season, a recent trend in commentary about the show and other media that depict the super-wealthy, as well as our favorite films and television of the year. Financial Times: The ‘Succession’ effect: how TV dramas got angrier about the rich https://www.ft.com/content/b3a10aeb-184d-46b8-9d64-9f5ea8a0d659...

In the second half of an epic recording, Brendan, Gabi, and guest Marie Bertonneau take a long view of the doctrinal, social, and political contexts surrounding The Righteous Gemstones, whether it represents a softening of its creators' earlier satirical projects, and the musical, historical, and literary influences that make up its deep-fried vision of the South. Marie Bertonneau tweets from @mar...

For the first installment of a two-part episode covering HBO's The Righteous Gemstones, Brendan, Gabi, and guest Marie Bertonneau take a deep dive into the history of collaboration between multihyphenate creators Danny McBride, Jody Hill, and David Gordon Green. The discussion starts with their time at the North Carolina School of the Arts and goes on to consider McBride's first screen appearance...

For the first installment in a series exploring works that make up the creative DNA of Succession, critic and author Adam Nayman joins Brendan to discuss The Game, the 1997 conspiracy thriller directed by David Fincher starring Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, and Deborah Kara Unger. The discussion kicks off with an analysis of the title sequence, which inspired Succession's own opening credits, and br...

From a chat recorded on March 7th, Brendan and Gabi reunite for a loose, hangout style episode to share some news about the podcast, discuss season 3 with the benefit of a few months’ hindsight, and share wildly outdated thoughts about the awards race. Topics include: Euphoria, The Righteous Gemstones, Golden Globes, SAGs, Emmys, Succession season 2 versus season 3, episode rankings, fantasy casti...

Dominoes fall in the Succession season finale, and "All the Bells Say": too late. Isaac Butler returns to the RoyCast for a spirited debate about the third season's flaws and virtues, as well as to weigh in with some expert commentary on the recent Jeremy Strong discourse. Topics from the finale discussion include: Ken's confession, the Roy children teaming up, parallels between Matsson and Logan,...

In another of Succession's trademark bad vacations, "Chiantishire" moves the season's plot, and maybe Kendall, towards an endgame. Anna Golez joins the Fly Guys to discuss the direction of Mark Mylod, new Nicholas Britell cues, the season's theme of historical change, Greek tragedy, deadbeat dads spanning multiple generations, Peter Munion, Kendall's fate, water imagery, John Berryman, podcasts, t...

At Ken's maximalist 40th birthday party, the Waystar team celebrates a sudden release from consequences while Ken looks for a resolution of his own. Film programmer and critic Madeleine Wall joins the RoyCast to discuss some of the episode's extreme highs and lows: Tom's King Kong moment and subsequent rough night, vagina tunnels, Connor's bag, Greg's game, Lukas Matsson, the return of Naomi, an a...

With returning guest Jeremy Mongeau, the Fly Guys wade into the swamp and try to dispel some of the very bad vibes emanating from “What It Takes”. Topics include: the show’s approach to the U.S. political system, the limits of triangulation, Justin Kirk’s home run performance, the Conheads, Shiv’s identity crisis, Roman’s show biz aspirations, the episode’s undercurrent of sinister libidinal energ...

At the much-anticipated Waystar shareholder meeting, "Retired Janitors of Idaho" finds the cast of Succession in a madcap scramble as they try to salvage a last-minute settlement with Sandy and Stewy while dealing with an incapacitated Logan. Emily VanDerWerff joins the RoyCast to discuss this episode's farcical energy, its visual and narrative form, the show's political themes, Shiv's redpilling,...