The Succession Writers Room Had A Secret Code For That Huge Plot Twist
The latest episode of "Succession" dropped what was possibly the biggest bombshell on the show so far, maybe one of the biggest in all of television. Patriarch Logan Roy has died, while the future of his company and his children are left up to fate. It was an unceremonious passing that happened without warning, taking both the characters and the audience by surprise. Logan began the series in the hospital, but he recovered a while ago and there was little, if anything, to suggest that he might pass. In order to preserve the absolute shock of the event, the writers' room had to mask the news of Logan's death with a "Curb Your Enthusiasm" reference.
Showrunner Jesse Armstrong had to plan out all the different ways the news could leak. In a move that resembles a PR strategy devised by Waystar Royco and Logan himself, actor Brian Cox showed up for a church funeral scene to make it seem as if his character was still alive. Cox presumed that a shoot staged like a funeral service would attract attention and stated that paparazzi bombarded him upon exiting the car, proving that his instincts were correct. The writers' room may not have been as public, but it was still important to keep the news from dropping from close within the HBO offices.
Codename: Larry David
According to Georgia Pritchett, one of the series' writers, she and all of her cohorts were informed of Logan's death in January 2022 so they could properly map out the entire series (Remember, there are still seven episodes left in the show!). Tasked with guarding this highly sensitive information, Pritchett tweeted that the writers adapted the codeword "Larry David" when discussing the episode. Thus, the whiteboard in the writers' room listed episode 403 as "Connor's Wedding, Larry David." "Mind you, that would also have been a great episode," Pritchett added.
It's important for writers to keep track of all the major events happening throughout the course of the series so they can keep their plans and ideas organized. That can create a problem when a particular episode calls for a major plot twist or reveal, and "Connor's Wedding" ranks among the most unexpected but game-changing moments of them all. Using Codename: Larry David was just innocuous enough to write off as an inside joke. Little did everyone know the insider information the term truly carried. Pritchett was right about the golden potential for Larry David at Logan's funeral, though. The man sure knows how to ruin a mourning.