As time runs short, Brian Cox holds out hope for Logan Roy

With rescue teams (including Reddit sleuths), Kendall Roy girlies, and channel surfers avoiding The Idol and searching for signs of life, Succession actor Brian Cox hasn’t given up hope that Logan Roy is still alive. However, as the search-and-rescue operation for a fictional character on a concluded TV show crosses the crucial 1,800-hour mark, chances for Roy’s survival look increasingly bleak.

Nevertheless, responding to fan questions for The Guardian, the actor who portrayed Roy’s corpse for a shot or two less than 100 days ago fueled speculation over the character’s death. “I think the debate is: is he dead? Have we seen his body?” he said. “They carefully avoided showing his body.”

Roy was last seen aboard his company jet headed to Sweden when the imaginary media tycoon, known chiefly for manipulating, abusing, and pitting his children against one another, collapsed. Attempts to resuscitate the character, which, again, isn’t real, were unsuccessful. Per the script for the episode “Connor’s Wedding” Succession, he was declared dead in the episode’s third act.

In a type of Schrodinger’s Fuck Off situation, Cox admitted that he still hasn’t seen the remainder of the series, leaving a small crack through which the rays of hope shine. Unfortunately, he’ll know the truth soon because while he doesn’t “like watching myself,” his “wife will make me.”

“I watched some the other night. We’ve got two more episodes to go: the funeral and the finale. So don’t tell me what happens.”

Though hope fades, Cox’s surprising optimism remains a solid foundation for fans in these dire times. “The impact of Logan Roy is way beyond one’s expectation,” he said. “That’s not just me. That’s also the writing. My favourite line in the whole show is: ‘I love you, but you’re not serious people.’ I’m going to start writing that on my Christmas cards. Ha!”

Ha, indeed. When Cox’s son Roman says, “Is he in there?” the actor who portrayed Logan Roy will know the answer: Maybe?