LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Before there was ‘Succession', Jesse Armstrong dabbled with a screenplay titled, ‘The Murdochs', which explores the life and times of media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and his family. But exposing the lives of the people behind the biggest media conglomerate in the world had its own risk and no rewards. Jesse was brave as he kept the names of the characters intact and used his years of experience and knowledge to craft the best story possible for the screen. But all his efforts proved unfruitful. Jesse Armstrong wrote ‘The Murdochs' in 2010 with the script making its way to Hollywood’s annual Black List, a docile of the best un-produced screenplays of the year.
The script has since been leaked and doing the rounds for years on the internet. Jesse went on to write ‘Succession', leaving behind the tragedy of never making ‘The Murdochs’ happen. But it is now ascertained that HBO’s flagship show originated from that very script that Jesse wrote almost 13 years ago. And to make matters worse, it is widely speculated that the ending of ‘The Murdochs’ might be a giveaway and spoil the finale of ‘Succession’. Even though a writer of Jesse’s stature can’t replicate the same story verbatim, netizens still can’t stop talking about this uncanny peculiarity. But does ‘The Murdochs’ really spoil ‘Succession’s’ end? Let’s find out.
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'The Murdochs’ is not entirely ‘Succession’
‘The Murdochs’ starts with Keith Rupert Murdoch, a 78-year-old patriarch of the family shouting in a very Logan Roy style, “Oh f**k. S**t. F**k it.” His three children include Lachlan who is Kendall Roy and James who is nothing but a persona of Roman Roy. The third sibling is the daughter Liz who is of course Shiv Roy and her husband is Matthew Feud, a true replica of Tom Wambsgans. However, Connor Roy, Logan’s eldest child in ‘Succession’, is portrayed as an elder daughter named Prudence in ‘The Murdochs'. The script is around two hours of screen time with the premise established in the first few pages. Keith wants to give his two young daughters from his third marriage voting rights and demands Lachlan, James, Liz and Prudence to alter the terms of the family trust to accommodate this new arrangement.
James, Liz, Lachlan, and Prudence begin to discuss and argue over their father’s unexpected request. During the script, the siblings plot against each other, and form different alliances but are manipulated by their father. Keith finally influence all his children to vote ‘Yes’ in favor of the new arrangement. However, the four children realize the problem and stand up to their father and deny the arrangement proposed by him. Keith doesn't stop here. In a final attempt to placate and manipulate his children again, he tells them, “I’m dying.”
There is a brief moment of shock and awe but the children see through their father’s tactic and demand proof of his illness. Keith shouts, “I’m your f**king dad and I’m telling you I’m dying.”
How does ‘The Murdochs’ end? Can it spoil ‘Succession’s finale?
The ending of the script leaves the character’s health an open question. However in the final season of ‘Succession', we’ve already witnessed Logan Roy’s death which is a huge difference from the script. The end of ‘The Murdochs’ also witness the siblings united against their father, which is exactly what transpired in the finale of season three. However, after the penultimate episode of the final season of ‘Succession', it is nearly impossible but not entirely to see all the Roy siblings reunite and push Lukas Matsson out of the equation. The finale is 1 hour and 30 minutes long, almost a feature-length film which is exactly what ‘The Murdochs’ script was.
‘Succession’ has been nothing but an emotional rollercoaster. The ride is now nearing its end but it’s a completely new ride, with its own distinctive and peculiar conclusion, away from the limelight of ‘The Murdochs’. ‘The script is history but credits to Jesse Armstrong who kept the fire burning and created a masterpiece with ‘Succession'.
