Spoiler alert: the destructive patriarch of Succession, Logan Roy never stepped down as CEO of a media conglomerate before his death, nor did he establish a succession plan. But the real Logan Roy just did it. Business and media mogul Rupert Murdoch, 92, announced Thursday that he will retire as chairman of Fox Corporation and News Corp. in mid-November. after a career spanning seven decades.
Despite HBO drama maker Jesse Armstrong reminding that the characters are fictional and that “no family unlocks them,” the Roys bear an uncanny resemblance to the Murdochs: a powerful, aging media executive who watches his children battle for control of the empire. Sounds familiar? The similarities are so obvious that Rupert Murdoch banned his ex-wife Jerry Hall from submitting story ideas Succession writers in their divorce settlement.
It is widely believed that Logan Roy, played by Brian Cox, is a composite of Murdoch and another media baron, the late Sumner Redstone, whose real story is more dramatic than any HBO show, as chronicled in the recent book Without script (on which a new TV series may soon be based). But it’s the laundry list of similarities between Murdoch and the CEO of Waystar Royco that makes them the closest analogues — due to their foreign origins and myriad health issues, speeches on printer-paper podiums, multiple marriages and divorces, and of course, confrontation with their children . each other while encouraging them to compete to be anointed as successors.
The rivalry between Roman and Kendall Roy bears a striking similarity to Lachlan and James Murdoch. Here’s a look at Fox News’ succession — and who came out on top.
Lachlan and James
While it has been clear for some time, it is now official: Murdoch said Thursday that he is handing over the reins to his 52-year-old son Lachlan, who will be the sole chairman of News Corp. will become and continue as executive chairman and CEO of Fox. Company.
Lachlan, his older sister Elisabeth and younger brother James have long been contenders for the top job. But Lachlan has seemingly always been Rupert’s ‘number one boy’ and the preferred choice to succeed him. Vanity fair reported in May. Murdoch has also suggested this:
“Currently their consensus is that Lachlan will take over,” Murdoch said in a 1997 interview, as reported by The guard. “He will be first among equals, but they will all have to prove themselves.”
At first glance, Lachlan draws obvious comparisons to Kendall. Both are eldest sons who are prepared to take over the family business one day. But personality-wise, Lachlan is more like Roman, the snarky, impulsive younger brother played by Kieran Culkin.
In 2005, Lachlan had a dispute with then-Fox News boss Roger Ailes, the same Ailes who was later sued by Fox host Gretchen Carlson for sexual harassment, which was not the case in the film. Bomb (with Margot Robbie and Nicole Kidman) was based. Lachlan stepped down from his role as News Corp’s deputy COO. and moved to Australia. He returned to the United States almost ten years later at his father’s request and agreed to become his heir.
But during Lachlan’s decade abroad, his younger brother, James, now 50, became heir apparent. James spent those years rising through the ranks, ensuring the longevity and respect of his father’s media empire by inking deals with companies like Hulu and National Geographic Channel and promising that News Corp. would become climate neutral. His father bringing Lachlan back was like a “huge slap in the face” for the younger brother, a source said Vanity fair.
James is similar to Kendall in that he was known as “the smart one” and had been wooed for the top job by his father for decades. James has held senior positions at News Corp. and even spent a stint in Hong Kong, reminiscent of Kendall’s time in Shanghai. Jeremy Strong, the actor who plays Kendall, shared it The New Yorker that he used details about James to prepare for the role.
Disney and Dominion
In August 2017, Murdoch and Disney CEO Bob Iger discussed selling 21st Century Fox’s assets to Disney. Lachlan and James had a falling out over the deal – Lachlan felt his father and brother were rushing to sell his future empire out from under him, while James thought this was a good business opportunity, according to Vanity fair. Not to mention, James was in talks with Iger to take a high-level position at Disney after the acquisition, the outlet reported.
The deal went through. Disney acquired 21st Century Fox’s film and television studios in March 2019 for more than $52 billion. Lachlan was left to run what was left – Fox News and its remaining assets – and James took his money and left to start a media fund called Lupa Systems. (The word country is Italian for ‘she-wolf’, like the one who raised Rome’s founding brothers – Romulus and Remus – before Romulus killed Remus, Vanity fair noted.)
Then Fox News got involved with Trump. In 2020, Murdoch’s right-wing news network became the town crier of theories that the presidential election had been stolen, claiming that Dominion Voting Systems voting machines had switched Americans’ votes to Biden after they voted for Trump. In response, Dominion filed a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News in March 2021, alleging that Murdoch protected Fox’s ratings by allowing hosts and guests to perpetuate the conspiracy . Two years later, Fox agreed to pay Dominion a $787 million settlement, and Fox host Tucker Carlson was fired.
Elizabeth and Prudence
The Succession inspirations go beyond Lachlan and James. Elisabeth is similar to Siobhan (better known as Shiv), the sharp and poised daughter who originally pursued a career outside her father’s empire and might as well run the company if only she weren’t a woman in an ultra-conservative, masculine style. -dominated industry. Meanwhile, Prudence Murdoch resembles Connor Roy, as she is the only child from the patriarch’s first marriage and is often considered the forgotten sibling.
Lachlan and James no longer talk. James has distanced himself from Fox News over its climate denial, white nationalism and election conspiracies. And now that Lachlan holds the keys to the kingdom, James will bide his time to drive out his brother with the help of their sisters, Elisabeth and Prudence, once their father is gone, sources say. Vanity fair.
People close to the Murdochs were unsure what James would do with Fox if he managed to win it back, but they assumed he would completely overhaul the organization or sell it to the highest bidder.
“James sees destroying Fox News as his life’s mission,” a senior Fox employee said Vanity fair.