Shiv & Tom Are in a ‘Fairly Bleak Spot’ When ‘Succession’ Returns for Season 4

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The battle lines are drawn. It’s dad versus the kids. The king versus his princes. And his princess.

For the first three seasons of the riveting drama Succession, Logan Roy (Brian Cox), the family patriarch of überwealthy business royalty, had been looking for a worthy successor to his kingdom. He would test the skills and loyalty of his children and then dismiss each and every one. Kendall (Jeremy Strong), the most experienced and the heir apparent. Roman (Kieran Culkin), the middle child, immature and inexperienced but dedicated to his father. And Shiv (Sarah Snook), the youngest and only daughter, who gave up politics for work in the family business, media conglomerate Waystar Royco.

Vying for Daddy’s attention, and the power he could bestow, had kept the siblings at odds, but no one could defeat him alone. And then, near the end of the last season, Logan unwittingly brought the kids together: He was going to sell the company. Goodbye, control. Goodbye, privilege. Goodbye to all that.

(Credit: JOE PUGLIESE/HBO)

Season 4 picks up the juicy threads, over a year later, where the show left off after it last aired in December 2021. Kendall, Roman, and Shiv had indeed aimed to halt Logan from selling Waystar to GoJo tech magnate Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård). However, Daddy was ready for them. He joyfully told them that the super-majority power they thought they possessed was null and void since he enlisted their mother, Lady Caroline Collingwood (Harriet Walter), to redefine the terms of their divorce agreement. Mic drop!

Then there’s Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen), Shiv’s seemingly devoted husband and Logan’s son-in-law. Following that bombshell, Logan’s appreciative and grateful pat on Tom’s shoulder spoke volumes about how he was responsible for tipping Logan off to the siblings’ plan. When we see them a few months later, where do Tom and Shiv stand? Snook explains, “That was something we discussed, Jesse [Armstrong, the show’s creator] and the cast and I. Have Shiv and Tom talked? Have they spoken about [his betrayal]? Does she decide to keep hold of the power [in their marriage]?”

(Credit: HBO)

Needless to say, Tom has made a bold power play, but could his ambitions eclipse his loyalty to Shiv? “He’s still Tom, of course, but he has a little more confidence that comes from aligning himself with his father-in-law,” says Macfadyen, adding that, at the end of the day, Tom is human. “He wants to be happy and feel loved. He’s also ambitious and competitive, maybe more than he admits.”

But the future of his union with Shiv is a big question mark. “They’re in a fairly bleak spot, probably the worst in their relationship thus far,” Macfadyen shares. And even if he talks to Logan about a scenario where his marriage would “bust up,” is he willing to take the risk? “In Succession, everyone is unsettled to a degree, jockeying for position, calculating strategy, evaluating the threats and opportunities, and looking for an angle,” he adds.

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That feeling will surely continue as Season 4 ventures headlong into the political arena as well as to more spectacular and eye-catching locales. “We went to Norway for a couple weeks,” Snook hints about where this season is headed. “It was beautiful.” Can the disloyal kids manage to usurp Logan and leave King Roy wandering among the fjords?

Succession, Final Season Premiere, Sunday, March 26, 9/8c, HBO & HBO Max

This is a story from the Poker Face issue of TV Insider Magazine. For more in-depth, reported coverage devoted to streaming shows from the publishers of TV Guide Magazine, pick up the April issue of the new monthly publication, currently on newsstands. You can also subscribe to TV Insider Magazine here now.