Sarah Snook Calls the End of 'Succession' "Devastating"

BY Sydney BrasilPublished Aug 2, 2023

While Succession may have ended months ago, its impact remains — especially for its actors. Shiv actor Sarah Snook is still letting go of the show, telling Variety that finding out it was ending was "devastating."

On the day of Succession's last table read, Snook found out who would take over Waystar Royco, making her think, "Are you fucking kidding me?" It was a one-two punch that day, as the blow of (spoilers) Tom taking over the company was met with news that the show's fourth season would be its last.

Snook knew going into the season that "it probably could end," but ultimately thought "it could go one way or the other — and also, it's nice to hope." She said her co-star Matthew Macfayden was hopeful as well.

"I arrived and was like, 'That's it. It's done,'" Snook says about reading the final episode's script. "And I walked in, and Matthew was like, 'No, I don't think so. I think that's quite hopeful! The last handhold, maybe there's potential for what's going to happen with Tom as CEO.'"

Shortly after, creator Jesse Armstrong announced that this would indeed be the end. "It was devastating," Snook recalled.

The actor also shared her confusion about some fans calling the ending a win for her character: "I never really considered that Tom becoming CEO is Shiv, by proxy, winning. For Shiv, that is so not a win! That is 'I'm once again power adjacent. I'm not the winner.'"

While she says she doesn't think about Shiv's future much, Snook said that she believes it involves "quite a deep postpartum depression."

In other recent Snook news, she recently starred in The Beanie Bubble and is currently living in Melbourne following the birth of her first child. In October, she'll start rehearsals for Dorian Gray, a play in which she will play all 26 roles.

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