'Succession' season three hasn't been rewritten to reference the coronavirus pandemic.
Succession cast
Showrunner Jesse Armstrong had finished writing the episodes and was preparing to start production when New York went into lockdown last March, causing huge delays for the HBO series, and he ultimately felt there was no need to rewrite any of the programme to reflect the current climate because he didn't think there would have been much of an impact on the Roy family who are at the heart of the show.
Sarah Snook, who plays Shiv Roy, explained: “These are really wealthy people. And unfortunately, none of the world’s really wealthy people were going to be affected by the pandemic.”
With filming delayed for several months, Sarah admitted the lengthy break made it harder for her to get back into character.
She told New York magazine: “Because we had such a gap between [seasons] two and three, and also because there was more of a public knowledge of the show, people had put up versions [online] of their own Shiv or parodies.
“It felt like I’m doing an impersonation of a person who plays Shiv who turns out to be me. I was like, Wait, I’m the person. I know.”
One things fans shouldn't expect from the new series is much "growth" from the characters.
Jesse said: “I’m always a little suspicious about growth. The idea that we all grew through life, had more perspective and wisdom and therefore maybe took greater care of people around us — I don’t think it is true."
But the writer admitted such an arc works better in film.
He added: “Something changes and somebody grows and they learn something and that’s the end of the movie. I don’t think that’s impossible, but I’m suspicious of that shape to people’s lives. It’s hard to change in a fundamental way.”
Jesse also revealed he had initially considered killing off patriarch Logan Roy (Brian Cox) at the end of the first season.
He added: "But then it became kind of obvious that that would be a dumb move, dramatically.”
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