He is the eldest Succession son, and he may have just delivered the saddest line of the series.
That’s right Conheads, your boy Connor Roy (Alan Ruck) grabbed the (karaoke) mic during Season 4, Episode 2, “Rehearsal,” and celebrated his (possibly?!) impending nuptials with his own sadboy rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Famous Blue Raincoat” in front of his siblings. Afterward, daddy Logan (Brian Cox) came to have a chat, and after he left, Connor let it all out.
In the purple glow of the private ka-Roy-oke room, Logan attempted to apologize to his kids, express a desire for togetherness, and stress that if they ask for more money in the GoJo deal Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård) will walk. Following a cold reception, Logan told his adult children he loved them in his own dysfunctional way and left. Then Con bounced shortly after, but not before a heartbreaking confession.
When Shiv (Sarah Snook) reassured Connor that his fiancé Willa (Justine Lupe) would be in touch with him soon, the eldest Roy son said, “You know what? It’s fine. The good thing about having a family that doesn’t love you is you learn to live without it. You’re all chasing after dad saying ‘Love me. Please love me. I need love. I need attention.’ You’re needy love sponges and I’m a plant that grows on rocks and lives off insects that die inside of me. If Willa doesn’t come back that’s fine. Cause I don’t need love. It’s like a superpower. And if she comes back and doesn’t love me that’s OK too, ’cause I don’t need it.” Brutal.
On the latest episode of HBO Max’s official Succession companion podcast, one of the show’s EPs and writers, Lucy Prebble, unpacked Connor’s crushing confession with host Kara Swisher.
“I love that little speech by Connor. We talked a lot in the room at the time about attachment theory and the idea of who’s dysfunctionally attached and who’s avoidantly attached. And basically we know that children who don’t get a certain amount of love and care do give up on hoping to receive it, which is why your relationships become harder when you get older and you’re avoidant by nature because you simply don’t really believe that it’s possible or that you’re deserving of it,” she said. “And Connor is this archetypal example of that. And that’s what he’s describing. He’s describing he has a superpower in this heartbreaking way, which I think is true. Whereas I think some of the other siblings probably haven’t given up on that.”
Fans were a bit surprised that Succession was making them feel for Connor — a man just barely hanging on to 1% of votes in an election — this late in the game. But as Kendall (Jeremy Strong) reminded us when asking if Logan was “sorry for fucking ignoring Connor his whole life” or for “having Connor’s mother locked up,” there are years of daddy issues we haven’t witnessed that helped shape these four lost souls.
When Connor arrives home later that night, his fiancé Willa is in bed waiting for him. So perhaps there’s still hope that this man will finally get some love in his life in Season 4 — even if it doesn’t come from dear old dad. But if Succession remains as ruthless and dysfunctional as it’s been the past three seasons, Con’s terribly sad superpower might be what saves him in the end.
New episodes of Succession premiere Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.
By: Ny Post
