Succession: Roy family members ranked from least loathsome to most

Kendall Roy

Connor is Logan’s eldest child, but Kendall is his eldest child who’s actually competent enough to maybe become the successor promised by the title, and is currently going behind the backs of Shiv and Roman to make sure that happens. “One head, one crown,” as he tells Waystar executive Frank Vernon.

So Kendall is shamelessly power-hungry; surely we’re not surprised by that by now. He pulls the kind of callous s*it you’d expect from this family, like firing a roomful of people working at a media company Waystar acquired the season prior, on Logan’s orders, of course.

What knocks Kendall up a notch is that he has more people he’s personally responsible for, and whom he fails. Although we almost never see them, Kendall has two children with his ex-wife Rava, whom he neglects in a way that recalls how Logan neglected him as a child. And of course, there was the time he got high with a caterer at his sister’s wedding, drove under the influence, crashed into a lake, failed to save the caterer, tried to pretend that nothing happened, and then accepted his father’s offer to cover up his manslaughter.

Also, and this is more a personal thing, but Kendall talks in a kind of bro speak I find very annoying. He just seems like the kind of guy who would be unironically into crypto, you know? He’s broken, he’s driven, he’s tragic, and he’s the worst.

Most Loathsome Roy: Logan Roy

Logan Roy, the man himself. Where do we begin? Well, we’ve already talked about what a horrible dad he was; his terrible behavior ranged from neglect to physical abuse, all of which he continues now that his kids are adults. He often uses his kids’ craving for his approval to manipulate them without a thought spared for their wellbeing.

The worst example of this comes in the second season, when Logan is coming under scrutiny for years of covering up sexual misconduct at his company. He convinces his son Kendall — then under Logan’s thrall following the death of the caterer — to take the fall for him, even though Logan is responsible.

Logan will send his lapdog-like son to jail to save himself. That selfishness runs through the media empire he built. The crown jewel of Waystar Royco, the ATN television network, willingly spreads lies, foments hate and supports fascists all in the name of viewership. Logan may love his children, but not more than he wants money and power.

It’s implied that Logan himself was abused as a child, and whatever scars he received have long since calcified into a cruel, toxic streak he freely indulges. No matter what happens between now and the Succession series finale in a few weeks, it’s unlikely anyone will top Logan when it comes to pure loathsomeness.

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