The specifics of the dialogue—especially in its most hilariously vicious and crude forms—is based on a general rule from Armstrong that every insult “should be at least as expressive of who the character uttering it is as it is eloquent, or ineloquent, about its target.” The article gives the example of a back and forth that sees Kendall’s exaggerated threat of physical violence responded to by his ex-friend with a line about “poo-poo [popping] out of my nose hole.” Another version of it comes from season 3's trailer when Logan Roy promises to “grind” his son’s “fucking bones to make my bread.” Kendall replies: “Okay, tell him that I’m gonna run up off the ... fucking beanstalk.”

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Read the rest of the article at The New Yorker for much more about Armstrong’s history as a writer and his approach to Succession’s characters ahead of the third season’s premiere this October.

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