Jeremy Strong Responds To Revelation That A ‘Succession’ Episode Sparked Murdoch Family Crisis Talks: “I Feel Great Empathy”
Life really does imitate art — and Jeremy Strong is here for it.
Appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the actor was asked about the revelation that Logan Roy’s demise in the final season of Succession last year sparked talks among Rupert Murdoch‘s children about their PR strategy in the event of the media mogul’s death.
The discussions were disclosed as part of a behind-closed-doors Nevada court case, during which Rupert Murdoch failed in an attempt to alter his family trust in favor of his eldest son Lachlan Murdoch. The New York Times reported that Mark Devereux, Elisabeth Murdoch’s representative to the trust, wrote a “‘Succession’ memo” intended to help avoid a real-life repeat of the events in the HBO series.
Stong told Kimmel that it showed Succession “speak[s] to the world that we’re in now” and that he had carefully considered the real-life resonance of the Emmy-winning drama. Strong played Kendall Roy, Logan’s second oldest son.
“When I read that about the Murdochs — who I feel great empathy for what they’re going through as a family having inhabited an adjacent world for seven years — my feeling is I take that really seriously. I’ve been accused of taking it seriously, I do take it seriously,” he said.
The latter remark about “taking it seriously” may be a reference to criticism from Brian Cox, who has taken issue with Strong’s method approach to acting. Cox recently said Strong would be “an even better actor if he just got rid of that so there would be much more inclusiveness in what he did.”
In a statement following the court ruling, James, Elisabeth, and Prudence Murdoch said: “We welcome Commissioner Gorman’s decision and hope that we can move beyond this litigation to focus on strengthening and rebuilding relationships among all family members.” Rupert intends to appeal.
