Jeremy Strong Says He Improvised Kendall Jumping Over the Railing and Into the River During His Final ‘Succession’ Scene — but Was Thwarted by Actor Playing His Bodyguard

In the series finale of Succession, there’s a moment at the very end of the episode where Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong), having been stripped of his power at Waystar Royco, wanders around downtown Manhattan and stares into New York Harbor as he’s trailed by his security detail, Colin (Scott Nicholson).

Kendall was lost and despondent after investing his entire life into his role at the company, sacrificing his family and, often, his morality, for the job, but what he planned to do in that moment as he walked to the waterfront was anybody’s guess.

Ultimately, the show ends with Kendall staring off into the distance and we’re left to wonder what his next move will be. On the Succession podcast, Strong revealed that during one of his takes, he wanted more definitive ending, so he took matters into his own hands and might have actually tried to kill Kendall by having him jump into the water.

“I stood up and walked slowly to the barrier that was set up there and climbed over it,” Strong told podcast host Kara Swisher. “And I didn’t really know what I planned to do. And the actor playing Colin saw me and ran and stopped me from doing it.”

“Do you think that was a good choice?” Swisher asked.

“I’m sure that [show creator] Jesse [Armstrong]’s choice is better,” Strong said, before adding, “You said you felt like he was gonna go in, and I did, I tried to.”

Strong said that the way that the ending is written offers some hope for Kendall’s redemption, and that Armstrong “intended… this sense that Kendall has lost, but maybe he is free, that maybe he’s gonna keep walking.”

Strong felt differently, though, saying, “I felt with everything in my body that there’s no coming back from this… I think that Kendall has just slowly mortgaged off everything and has nothing left to live for.”

Whether Kendall lives or dies, Strong says there’s no doubt that, “It’s a completely tragic ending, from my perspective.”

Succession Seasons 1 through 4 are now streaming on Max.