- Brian Cox believes his "Succession" character Logan Roy was abused as a child.
- He told The Times of London he thinks the media tycoon "doesn't believe in the human race."
Brian Cox said he thinks part of the reason his "Succession" character "doesn't believe in the human race" is because he was abused as a child.
In an interview with the Times of London's Jonathan Dean shared Saturday, the actor spoke about the end of the hit HBO drama, the fourth and final season of which premieres on Sunday.
Cox also shared his thoughts on the origins of his character Logan Roy, the ruthless head of the fictional media conglomerate Waystar Royco. He said he thinks the tycoon was a "young hopeful liberal who became this right-wing misanthrope based on how the world did not live up to his expectations."
According to the outlet, Cox told Dean that in his imagined backstory of the character, he believes Logan may have been abused when he was a child, impacting his outlook on humanity.
"He doesn't believe in the human race," he explained. "He believes we're a bunch of tossers and I can partly agree. But I'm an optimist."
He also shared insight into Logan's regrets surrounding his four children, who spent the first three seasons locked in battles for power and influence — sometimes with others, and often with each other.
"The family has been exposed. They've been found wanting in the succession struggle. That's Logan's regret," Cox said. "His children have not stepped up to the plate, so now we go in a different direction."
According to Insider's Olivia Singh, the fourth season will focus on the impending sale of Waystar Royco after the Roy children were cut out of the deal.
Although Cox hasn't given away any spoilers in a slew of recent interviews about the new season, he told Variety earlier this month that Logan "gets what he needs" in the end.
"That's the great thing about the show. He gets peace, which is good," he said.
The actor has been outspoken in his opinions about the show's conclusion, noting to Variety that he "felt nothing" while filming his final scene of the series.
Things panned out differently for his costar Sarah Snook: In a recent appearance on "The Jonathan Ross Show," Cox said Snook only found out the show was ending at a table read of the last episode.
"She only found out it was finishing at the table read of the last episode, which is a bit late. We all knew. We all thought everybody else knew. I knew for a while," he said.
Snook, who plays Logan's only daughter Shiv Roy, told The Los Angeles Times on March 19 that she became emotional after the revelation, even though she thought the decision to end the show was "smart."
"I was very upset. I felt a huge sense of loss, disappointment, and sadness," she said. "It would have been nice to know at the beginning of the season, but I also understand not being told until the end because there was still a potential that maybe this wasn't going to be the end."