Succession series finale: Director on Kendall ‘alternate ending’

There has been a lot of talk as of late about an “alternate ending” to the Succession series finale, one that involved Kendall Roy having an alternate fate.

With that being said, is a lot of this being blown out of proportion? We tend to think so at the moment. Apparently, Jeremy Strong led an impromptu recreation of the final scene during filming, one where he jumped the barricade and wandered to the ocean only to be stopped by the actor playing Colin. It only heightened the implication that Kendall took his own life, but you can argue that the version we saw on-screen implies that this could still happen. (That was the version written for the finale, and there was technically no “alternate ending” from a direct, creative sense.)

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So what did finale director Mark Mylod have to say about what actually happened on location? Speaking to Variety, he described what happened when Strong wandered out towards the water:

… There was a safety element, obviously, with Jeremy going into frigid water. The first thing to do was actually make sure he was safe. Once we got him back over the railing, we were able to safely continue with the moment because both actors were still in it…

Mylod goes on to describe some of the boardroom scenes in the finale, and noted that there is a sense of collaboration involving a lot of people who are working at all times. We do think there was always the flexibility to try different takes, but there is also probably a limit to it … and that includes Jeremy going into freezing cold water that could actually make him sick.

In the end, the ending that was chosen for Succession was also the better one anyway. Just remember that this leaves everything far more up to interpretation. Nothing on this show has to be that explicit.

Related – Be sure to get some more news on Succession now, including more from Jeremy Strong

What did you think about the overall events of the Succession series finale?

Be sure to share now in the comments! Once you do just that, remember to come back for some other updates.

(Photo: HBO.)

This article was written by Jessica BunBun.