Jeremy Strong 'Sometimes Lost Touch with Joy' PlayingSuccession's Kendall Roy: 'It F---ed Me Up'

Mar. 15, 2025

Jeremy Strong at the New York premiere screening of “The Apprentice” held at the DGA Theater on October 8, 2024 in New York City.Photo:Daniel Zuchnik/Variety via Getty

Daniel Zuchnik/Variety via Getty

Succession’s Kendall Roy may go down as the most iconic character ofJeremy Strong’s career, but playing the power-hungry businessman was a different story for the actor.Strong, 45, who played the heir apparent to Logan Roy (Brian Cox) for all four seasons of the hit HBO series, admitted that the character “f—ed me up” in a new interview withThe Times.“I sometimes lost touch with joy,” he said of life afterSuccession, whichconcluded in May 2023, as he’s “rediscovered play.“Still, Strong knows that the hit series — which dominated the awards season, picking upfive Emmy Awards winsandfour Golden Globesfor its fourth and final season — was “an incalculable gift.““The material [was] a banquet. So I miss that,” he told the outlet. “But Kendall’s struggle was difficult to carry for seven years. And there’s just so much more I want to do.”Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong in ‘Succession’ season 4.HBOThe chapter is securely closed on Kendall for Strong, as he said of the possibility of a spinoff involving his character, “It’s not something I have any wish to do any longer. I’m aware it is one of the main chapters of my life, but I don’t miss it.”The actor — who just took on the role ofDonald Trump’s lawyer Roy Cohn inThe ApprenticealongsideSebastian Stan— shared a similar sentiment with PEOPLE in June.“I’m sure there’s a desire for more [Succession]… But I think in terms of the role that I played, he came to his terminal point,” Strong said at the2024 Tony Awards. “So for me, that’s something that is very happily put to rest.“Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy on ‘Succession’.Graeme Hunter/HBOStrong isn’t the onlySuccessionalum against returning to the Roy family drama. At the2024 Golden Globes, his former costarKieran Culkin, who played Roman Roy, said, “I feel like I should have a joke for this, butI feel like a spinoff is a horrible idea.““Sometimes they work, yeah. I was going to say, rememberFrasier? We all lovedFrasier, but not every show could beFrasier.“The one character that could be worthy of exploring further in Culkin’s eyes isNicholas Braun’s Greg Hirsch. “Cousin Greg would make a good spinoff show, I gotta be honest. That would be kind of fun.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Successioncan be streamed in full on Max.

Succession’s Kendall Roy may go down as the most iconic character ofJeremy Strong’s career, but playing the power-hungry businessman was a different story for the actor.

Strong, 45, who played the heir apparent to Logan Roy (Brian Cox) for all four seasons of the hit HBO series, admitted that the character “f—ed me up” in a new interview withThe Times.

“I sometimes lost touch with joy,” he said of life afterSuccession, whichconcluded in May 2023, as he’s “rediscovered play.”

Still, Strong knows that the hit series — which dominated the awards season, picking upfive Emmy Awards winsandfour Golden Globesfor its fourth and final season — was “an incalculable gift.““The material [was] a banquet. So I miss that,” he told the outlet. “But Kendall’s struggle was difficult to carry for seven years. And there’s just so much more I want to do.”

Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong in ‘Succession’ season 4.HBO

HBO

The chapter is securely closed on Kendall for Strong, as he said of the possibility of a spinoff involving his character, “It’s not something I have any wish to do any longer. I’m aware it is one of the main chapters of my life, but I don’t miss it.”

The actor — who just took on the role ofDonald Trump’s lawyer Roy Cohn inThe ApprenticealongsideSebastian Stan— shared a similar sentiment with PEOPLE in June.

“I’m sure there’s a desire for more [Succession]… But I think in terms of the role that I played, he came to his terminal point,” Strong said at the2024 Tony Awards. “So for me, that’s something that is very happily put to rest.”

Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy on ‘Succession’.Graeme Hunter/HBO

Graeme Hunter/HBO

Strong isn’t the onlySuccessionalum against returning to the Roy family drama. At the2024 Golden Globes, his former costarKieran Culkin, who played Roman Roy, said, “I feel like I should have a joke for this, butI feel like a spinoff is a horrible idea.”

“Sometimes they work, yeah. I was going to say, rememberFrasier? We all lovedFrasier, but not every show could beFrasier.”

The one character that could be worthy of exploring further in Culkin’s eyes isNicholas Braun’s Greg Hirsch. “Cousin Greg would make a good spinoff show, I gotta be honest. That would be kind of fun.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Successioncan be streamed in full on Max.

source: people.com