5 burning questions we have ahead of Succession season 3

Clockwise from top left: Matthew Macfadyen as Tom, Sarah Snook as Shiv, J. Smith Cameron as Gerri, Brian Cox as Logan. Jeremy Strong as Kendall, Kieran Culkin as Roman

It’s been two whole years since HBO’s award-winning drama Succession ended its second season with a jaw-dropping cliffhanger. 2020 felt like it lasted a decade, so if you need a reminder on everything that went down, here’s a quick summary: Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) finally revealed to the public that his father, Logan Roy (Brian Cox) was fully aware of all the problems within the company. It was a total power grab on his part.

The season-two finale, “This Is Not For Tears,” also put Shiv (Sarah Snook) and Tom’s (Matthew Macfadyen) marriage on the rocks, left eldest son Connor (Alan Ruck) without a purpose, and saw Logan’s wife Marcia (Hiam Abbass) check out after learning he had an affair.

In time for the show’s highly anticipated return, The A.V. Club staff is hoping to get answers to some pivotal burning questions in season three as Logan and Kendall scramble to make allegiances to emerge on top of this corporate—and familial—war.

You can also catch up with the Roys before the October 17 premiere with this in-depth recap.

2 / 7

Will Kendall’s actions in the season-one finale come back to haunt him?

Jeremy Strong in Succession’s season 1 finale — Jeremy Strong in *Succession*’s season 1 finale

It may be hard to remember back to the season-one finale, as so much has happened since, but it was just as eventful as the last. In “Nobody Is Ever Missing,” Kendall, drunk at Shiv and Tom’s wedding, crashes a car into a lake with a busboy in the passenger’s seat, who doesn’t make it out alive. When Logan finds out, he uses the information to blackmail Kendall into dropping his and Stewy’s (Arian Moayed) hostile takeover of the company, a.k.a. the “bear hug.” Throughout season two, it seemed as though this was all a settled matter, with a dead-eyed Kendall doing his father’s bidding.

But now that Kendall has named Logan in the cruise corruption scandal, will the death of the busboy resurface? We can’t imagine Logan will reveal anything, since he was complicit in its coverup, but what about Marcia? She’s never been close with the Roy children, and after discovering Logan’s affair with Rhea Jarrell (Holly Hunter), she and her husband haven’t been particularly simpatico lately either. It’s not Marcia’s style to do anything big and public, but we can imagine her saying something sotto voce to the wrong/right person during a cocktail party. [Laura Adamczyk]

3 / 7

What is the fate of Shiv and Tom’s marriage?

Sarah Snook and Matthew Macfayden in Succession season 2 — Sarah Snook and Matthew Macfayden in *Succession* season 2

In the season-two finale, Tom tearfully told Shiv about his ongoing frustration with their surprise “open” marriage and finally confessed he’s not looking for threesomes or the casual side hookup. He also gave one of the more tear-welling lines of the season when he told her, “I wonder if the sad I’d be without you, would be less than the sad I get from being with you.” It’s obvious Tom is feeling unsupported, unloved, and thoroughly used by Shiv and the entire Roy family, ultimately leading up to him chowing down on Logan’s chicken at lunch in some sort of desperate power play.

Out of Tom’s sight, Shiv practically begs her father not to blame him for all of the company’s crimes, but it’s unclear if the two reached any reconciliation over the boat trip. It still seems unlikely Tom would be the one to push for a divorce. But Tom undoubtedly deserves better treatment, whether it be with Shiv or with someone else. It will be interesting to see if Shiv will step up to the challenge. [Gabrielle Sanchez]

4 / 7

What’s going on with Gerri and Roman, and what does she get out of their interplay?

Kieran Culkin and J. Smith Cameron in Succession season 2 — Kieran Culkin and J. Smith Cameron in *Succession* season 2

A will-they/won’t-they relationship for the television history books—under a section titled, “Is This Allowed???”—Roman Roy (Kieran Culkin) and Gerri Kellman (J. Smith-Cameron) have surprisingly become one of Succession’s more functional duos. Over the course of season two, we watched through our fingers as Waystar Royco’s General Counsel indulged the young Roy tyrant’s sexual proclivities via verbal shaming.

Squirm-inducing? Absolutely. But the shared secret of their dirty dalliances has brought Roman and Gerri even closer together. Gunning to be the company’s “dream ticket,” Gerri’s been grooming Roman into a more suitable successor, while Roman’s shown he’s willing to put his neck on the line for Gerri, even saving her from becoming the cruise scandal scapegoat.

But is Gerri deriving just as much pleasure as Roman from their late-night “talks,”or is she only participating to keep him on a short leash? (Something Roman might enjoy, come to think of it.) Regardless, it only seems like a matter of time before Succession reveals who’s the true “dom” of this partnership. [Cameron Scheetz]

5 / 7

What will Connor do now that he’s given up a pointless presidential campaign?

Alan Ruck, Sarah Snook, Jeremy Strong in Succession season 3 — Alan Ruck, Sarah Snook, Jeremy Strong in *Succession* season 3

Poor Connor Roy. You kind of have to feel for him, as Logan’s first-born son keeps getting left in the dust of his younger, savvier siblings. All Connor seems to be good at is concocting harebrained schemes to go through a ton of money in a short period of time, like investing in a terrible play to please his girlfriend or concocting a pointless presidential campaign.

Hence, his request of a mere $100 million just to tide him over in the season-two finale. Logan agreed, but only if he’d give up that foolish run for president, which begs the question: What will Connor do now in season three? Alan Ruck seems as fed up with Connor Roy as the rest of us, describing his character’s ambitions to Variety: “It’s the same old crap; he doesn’t really have any ideas.” Still, Ruck revealed that Connor will have “more to do this season than in season two,” but noted that the show was not called “Connor’s progress.” Sadly unsurprising. [Gwen Ihnat]

6 / 7

How did Kendall and Cousin Greg formulate their plan to take down Logan?

Jeremy Strong and Nicholas Braun in Succession season 3 — Jeremy Strong and Nicholas Braun in *Succession* season 3

Kendall’s incendiary press conference in the season-two finale has truly changed the game for Succession and all its key players. Logan’s number-one boy essentially declared all-out war, and now the whole family has to openly choose sides. But how did Kendall get the confidence to finally reveal his father’s misdeeds in public, and when did he decide to take Cousin Greg (Nicholas Braun) along for the ride?

Greg never fully destroyed the cruise line evidence, grabbing a few papers before he and Tom burned the rest. Perhaps on the flight over to New York City in the finale, Greg shared this information with Kendall, who then used it to his advantage. Or did Ken just make a calculated gamble when he announced to the press he has proof of Logan knowing all about the wrongdoings at Waystar Royco? Hopefully, the third season premiere will answer how the two men, who developed some sort of a bond in season two, decided to take down the big fish. [Saloni Gajjar]

5 burning questions we have ahead of Succession’s third season

5 burning questions we have ahead of Succession’s third season

Here are the biggest questions we’d like to see answered in the HBO drama’s season 3, debuting on Sunday, October 17

Will Kendall’s actions in the season-one finale come back to haunt him?

Will Kendall’s actions in the season-one finale come back to haunt him?

What is the fate of Shiv and Tom’s marriage?

What is the fate of Shiv and Tom’s marriage?

What’s going on with Gerri and Roman, and what does she get out of their interplay?

What’s going on with Gerri and Roman, and what does she get out of their interplay?

What will Connor do now that he’s given up a pointless presidential campaign?

What will Connor do now that he’s given up a pointless presidential campaign?

How did Kendall and Cousin Greg formulate their plan to take down Logan?

How did Kendall and Cousin Greg formulate their plan to take down Logan?