Logan Roy (Brian Cox) might appear to be a larger-than-life character but he is, in fact, inspired by a real person — namely, Rupert Murdoch. In fact, Murdoch sees so much of himself in Succession that in his recent divorce settlement, he forbade his ex-wife from feeding story ideas to the Succession writers. As we dive into both the striking similarities and notable differences between Logan Roy and Rupert Murdoch, we’ll see how real life can sometimes be just as compelling and outrageous as fiction.
Humble Origin Stories
Both Logan Roy and Rupert Murdoch come from relatively humble backgrounds. Logan was born into poverty in Dundee, Scotland, and later moved to Quebec, where he was raised by an abusive uncle. Rupert Murdoch had a better start in life. He was born in Melbourne, Australia to a father who owned several newspapers, which Rupert would later inherit. While Rupert definitely had a leg up in life, especially compared to his fictional counterpart, he nonetheless expanded his father’s newspaper business from a regional Australian outfit to a global media empire.
The Murdoch Empire vs. The Roy Empire
As both Logan and Rupert’s ambitions started to come to fruition, they rapidly began acquiring numerous businesses across the world. Ultimately, Rupert would come to own, at one time or another, newspapers, tabloids, a movie studio, a book publisher, and a TV network. Similarly, most of Logan’s prominent companies are in media, such as the ATN news network (inspired by Murdoch’s Fox News) and the New York Globe (likely based on Murdoch’s New York Post). Unlike Rupert, Logan also owned a cruise line and theme parks. Otherwise, Waystar Royco’s assets are practically identical to Murdoch’s.
The Matriarchs of the Roy Family
Logan was married a total of three times in his life. His first wife is unnamed in the show, but she is Connor Roy’s (Alan Ruck) mother. Logan’s second wife was Caroline Collingwood, mother to Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Shiv (Sarah Snook), and Roman (Kieran Culkin). In Season 3, Caroline remarries a man named Peter Munion. Logan’s third and final wife was Marcia Roy (Hiam Abbass), who remained married to Logan until his death.
Rupert Murdoch has similarly had a number of wives, albeit with even more fanfare and scandals than Logan. His first wife, Patricia Booker, died in 2000. His second wife, Anna Murdoch Mann, was a journalist who later served on the board of directors of Murdoch’s News Corp. She is the mother to Rupert’s three most well-known children, Elisabeth, Lachlan, and James. Rupert’s third wife was Wendi Deng, a Chinese-American who, depending on who you believe, may or may not be a spy for the Chinese government. Rupert’s fourth wife, Jerry Hall, is a model-turned-actress who was the long-term girlfriend of Rolling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger. She and Rupert divorced in 2022. As if all that wasn’t enough, Rupert was also briefly engaged earlier this year to Ann Lesley Smith. Their engagement was suddenly called off just weeks after it was publicly announced.
The Heirs to the Thrones
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While Rupert Murdoch has a total of six kids and Logan Roy a total of four, both have three offspring who feature most prominently in their lives and business empires. Rupert’s eldest son Lachlan is roughly akin to Kendall Roy. Both are (or were) most likely to succeed their fathers. Both also fell out of favor in their fathers’ businesses for prolonged periods of time. Rupert’s next oldest son, James, bears some similarities to Roman. Both are rebellious and hot-headed. But while Roman’s politics largely jibe with his father’s, James famously hates his father’s right-wing media outlets. Rupert’s oldest daughter Elisabeth doesn’t have too much in common with Shiv other than the fact that they’re both women. Elisabeth has largely carved out her own career path outside of her father’s companies.
Who Will Succeed the Patriarchs?
At various points in the Murdoch family’s history, all three of Rupert’s kids have been rumored to succeed their father, much like Kendall, Roman, and Shiv have all taken turns as the heir apparent. Lachlan was initially considered the frontrunner, but he suddenly quit the business, making James the next in line. Due to a combination of the News of the World phone hacking scandal and his own political disagreements with his father, James left the company as well. Then Lachlan stepped back in to reclaim his spot as the Murdoch most likely to succeed his father. But with the Murdochs, just like the Roys, who knows what will happen next? Both Logan and Rupert have proven to be two unpredictable, impulsive, but also brilliant media tycoons with a complicated family history, to say the least.
New episodes of Succession Season 4 premiere every Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.