Since premiering in 2018 on HBO, Succession has impressed both audiences and critics alike with its sharp dialogue, strong performances from its large, talented cast, and overall plot and drama.
The show (created by British writer Jesse Armstrong) surrounds the Roy family, an extremely wealthy family helmed by patriarch Logan Roy (played by Brian Cox), who owns the company Waystar Royco, a Disney-esque entertainment enterprise worth billions of dollars.
Natalie Gold, Alan Ruck, Jeremy Strong, Nicholas Braun, Brian Cox, Hiam Abbass, Matthew Macfadyen, Kieran Culkin, and J.Smith-Cameron attend the ‘Succession’ New York premiere at Time Warner Center on May 22, 2018, in New York City (Credit: Startraksphoto / John Nacion)
The relationships between the family members are torrid, however, as each child vies for control of the company due to the old age and poor health of Logan Roy.
In this article, we’ll look at the cast of characters in Succession, ranking them on their height, and sharing any fun trivia or tidbits of information we can find on them. Succession fans, get ready to learn all about the cast and characters of Succession!
8. Gerri Kellman (J. Smith-Cameron) – 5’4” (163 cm)
A recurring but important character in the show, Gerri is a long-standing employee of Waystar Royco, who also acts as the godmother to “Shiv” Roy, the main female presence of the show.
J. Smith-Cameron portrays Gerri Kellman, the general counsel to Waystar Royco, on Succession (Credit: HBO)
While initially appearing to be a somewhat weak-willed character, Gerri impresses the audiences and the Roy family with her own cunning sense of agency and willingness to get her hands dirty to move up within the company, eventually stepping in as the interim CEO of Waystar Royco by the later seasons of the show, after denying the position in Season 1 due to the heavy amounts of debt that the company incurred by that point, and due to the uncertain nature of Logan Roy’s health and status as head of the company as well.
Gerri also has an interesting relationship with Roman Roy, which is explored in the third season of the show. Roman has a strange perverse relationship with Gerri and later relies on her for sexual gratification, much to Gerri’s chagrin.
7. Roman “Romulus” Roy (Kieran Culkin) – 5’6” (167 cm)
The youngest child of the main Roy family, Roman Roy is in his early 30s during the events of the show up until this point.
Within the show, Roman is shown to be an arrogant and insufferable character, consistently belittling the rest of the Roy family with his snide cockiness.
However, this egomania is a thinly veiled attempt at covering his insecurities, as Roman is sexually dysfunctional and acknowledges his many flaws in private to his psychologist.
Kieran Culkin as Roman Roy in the American satirical black comedy-drama television series Succession (Credit: HBO)
Roman rarely goes against his father’s wishes, and often acts as a tool (both literally and figuratively) for his father to maneuver against any opponent he faces.
This changes during the course of the latest season, as Roman begins to work with his siblings against Logan, pitting the two parties against each other in a struggle for ultimate control.
Kieran Culkin also belongs to a high-profile family himself, being the middle brother of Macaulay and Rory Culkin, who are both respectable actors in their own right (Macaulay had a huge career as a child star in the 1990s).
6. Siobhan “Shiv” Roy (Sarah Snook) – 5’6” (167 cm)
Standing just as tall as her younger brother Roman, Shiv acts as the main female presence within Waystar Royco, while also pursuing her own career as a political campaign manager for multiple presidential candidates.
Eventually, she decides to park her political ambitions to compete for the coveted position of being the head of Waystar Royco, a position that her father consistently tempts her with.
Australian actress Sarah Snook is best known for her starring role as Shiv Roy in the television series Succession (Credit: HBO)
Interestingly, in an interview with People Magazine, Sarah Snook revealed that she initially turned down the offer to appear in Succession, due to the fact that she would be acting as the only female character among a cast comprised mainly of males.
However, upon reading the screenplay for the pilot episode, Snook became interested in the role as a counter to the predominantly male presence onscreen.
We’re definitely glad she ended up taking the role, as her character remains a force to be reckoned with, even after three seasons.
5. Logan Roy (Brian Cox) – 5’9” (176 cm)
Although Logan Roy within the show acts as the powerful, cocky, and larger-than-life figurehead of the Roy family, it’s interesting that he remains one of the shorter members of the cast.
Kieran Culkin is significantly shorter than his Succession co-star Brian Cox (Credit: John Nacion / Startraksphoto)
For the characterization of Logan, Jesse Armstrong drew from Ruper Murdoch, the real-life morally dubious media tycoon.
Cox plays the role of Logan as a character that audiences love to hate, his arrogance and abrasive demeanor often cause him to come into conflict with the rest of his family.
The Scottish actor had an influence on the characterization of Logan right off the bat, as he suggested to the showrunners that the character should come from Scotland (where Cox himself hails from) and not Quebec, which was the initial plan. Eventually, the writers relented, placing Logan Roy’s hometown as Dundee, the same town where Cox was born.
Brian Cox stars as Logan Roy on HBO’s critically lauded series Succession (Credit: HBO)
We love the casting of Cox as Logan Roy, as it gives the character an undeniable presence onscreen, one that Cox can seemingly only provide. We couldn’t see anyone else in the role.
4. Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) – 5’10” (179 cm)
The middle son and seemingly the individual most likely to take control of Waystar Royco at the beginning of the show, Kendall Roy is a deeply flawed character, who often struggles with his own demons just as much as he struggles with the ambitious goals of his siblings and cantankerous father.
Indeed, in the show, Kendall is the figure who acts against his father’s wishes the most often and is oftentimes the only one to step up to the plate to bat against the great Logan Roy.
At the start of the show, Kendall’s flaws aren’t as apparent, though they rear their ugly heads by the conclusion of the first season, continuing to be a prominent part of his character from that point.
American actor Jeremy Strong has become famous as Kendall Roy in the HBO television series Succession (Credit: HBO)
Kendall is someone who struggles with an addiction to cocaine, which often causes him to act rashly, against the advice of the rest of his family.
Jeremy Strong previously worked with director Adam McKay (who directed the pilot of Succession) on The Big Short, which helped him to be cast as Kendall Roy – although showrunner Jesse Armstrong was initially skeptical that Strong could play the role to his satisfaction.
In the end, we couldn’t see anyone else playing the flawed (but oddly likable) Kendall.
3. Connor Roy (Alan Ruck) – 6’0” (183 cm)
Rounding out the cast of the Roy family, Alan Ruck plays the role of Connor Roy, the eldest son of Logan.
Despite being the eldest son, Connor is not considering a potential successor for the helm of Waystar Royco by his father, due to Connor’s insistence on living a life that prioritizes pleasure and the pursuit of multiple hobbies over the health and success of the company.
Due to this, Connor is often isolated from the happenings inside the company and prefers to live at a remote ranch in New Mexico, far away from New York City, where most of the events of the show take place.
Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy is slightly shorter than Alan Ruck as Connor Roy in Succession (Credit: HBO)
Despite Connor’s free-spirited nature, he does have lofty (and oftentimes ridiculous) ambitions of his own.
During the second and third seasons of the show, Connor runs for president, embarrassing his family in the process due to his lack of experience in any political capacity.
2. Tom Wambsgams (Matthew Macfadyen) – 6’3” (191 cm)
Deemed the most interesting character in the show by Logan Roy actor Brian Cox, Tom Wambsgams acts as an outsider to the Roy family, only getting close to them through his relationship with Shiv.
Tom is depicted as an airhead who stumbles his way through senior positions at Waystar Royco, as he is placed within the role of head of the amusement park and cruise division of the company, a position he is grossly unprepared for.
Sarah Snook as Siobhan ‘Shiv’ Roy, Matthew Macfadyen as Tom Wambsgans, and Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy in Succession (Credit: HBO)
Eventually, however, Tom begins to develop into a capable mover within Waystar RoyCo, and reveals he has greater ambitions of his own, going against the wishes of his wife Shiv and the rest of the Roy siblings to ally himself with Logan Roy, much to Shiv’s surprise.
Interestingly enough, Matthew Macfadyen is British, much like his co-star Brian Cox. His character is often fuelled by his problematic relationship with Greg, a fellow outsider who wishes to enjoy the power afforded by the company, who is enlisted as Tom’s subordinate – a relationship that proves to be a concoction of conflict and friendship. We can’t wait to see what happens next to Tom!
1. Greg Hirsch (Nicholas Braun) – 6’7” (201 cm)
Perhaps the most likable character on the show, Greg Hirsch is a distant relative of the Roy family, and moves to New York City, initially to work as a mascot within the amusement park division of the company.
After messing up that opportunity, he works more closely with the family, although he often acts as a dumpster for the problems incurred by the Roy family.
Nicholas Braun as Greg Hirsch is the tallest Succession cast member and measures 6′ 7″ (Credit: HBO)
Greg is the breakout role for actor Nicholas Braun, and is his most recognizable role to date – Braun has commented that the role has opened new doors for him as an actor, especially considering Braun was 30 years old when he was cast as Greg.
Audiences love the role of Greg for the humor he provides to the often dark and ugly subject matter of the show, and recent work in films like Zola and Cat Person solidifies the fact that Nicholas Braun is now an in-demand actor.
Nicholas Braun (R) towers over his co-stars Matthew Macfadyan, J. Smith Cameron, Kieran Culkin, Jeremy Strong, Jesse Armstrong (the show’s creator), Sarah Snook, and Brian Cox at the “Succession” Emmy FYC Screening & Panel on June 13, 2022, in New York City (Credit: Dave Allocca / StarPix)
We personally love the character of Greg, and we’re interested to see how his character fits within the conflict revealed at the end of Season 3.
With season 4 of Succession being currently filmed, we personally cannot wait to see what happens to the Roy family and everyone else involved in their inter-familial drama.
We hope you enjoyed this article on the main cast of Succession, and we hope that it tides you over until the next season of the show premieres!