Roman Roy is now co-CEOs of Waystar RoyCo on HBO’s “Succession,” so it’s only natural that actor Kieran Culkin followed suit with his Emmy campaign.
Culkin, who plays the sarcastic and jokey Roman on HBO’s hit drama series, confirms to Variety exclusively he will be submitted for the lead drama actor category at this year’s Primetime Emmy Awards. This marks a category switch for the actor, who previously submitted in the supporting categories for the three previous seasons. Roman has come to the forefront during this fourth and final season of the show, leading the way on the Waystar-GoJo deal with his siblings Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and Shiv (Sarah Snook).
“If you’re asking if he’s a lead character, then I would say absolutely,” Culkin says during an upcoming episode of the Variety Awards Circuit Podcast. “I think this season was set up before episode three happened as Logan versus Shiv, Roman, Kendall. And then [Logan] passes, and it’s what I think the central focus of the show is — the three of them.”
Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions.
Culkin has received two previous Emmy noms for the second and third seasons of “Succession,” losing out to Tobias Menzies for “The Crown” and his co-star Matthew Macfadyen, who plays the smarmy executive Tom.
Strong won the Emmy for the show’s second season and was nominated again for the third alongside Brian Cox as Logan, the Roy family patriarch. Strong’s team also confirms he will submit for a leading actor bid. There isn’t confirmation yet on where Cox and Snook will ultimately campaign. As it stands, Cox has appeared in three of the five episodes of the season. If he doesn’t appear in any others, he will have carte blanche to submit in any of three acting categories — lead, supporting or guest actor. Per Emmy rules, “Only performers appearing in less than 50% of the eligible episodes can submit in the guest performer categories.”
HBO’s “Succession”
Graeme Hunter
Culkin’s decision has nothing to do with campaign strategy or tactics, saying “It’s just that’s what the show is. If I’m supporting, that would mean Kendall and Shiv are also. And to me, that doesn’t feel like that’s the show. The show has always felt like an ensemble, but the center of gravity is this man, Logan. So it’s always sort of silly to think of these things — who’s lead, who’s supporting, but it always felt like he’s lead, and we’re all dancing around him.”
Culkin has been an accomplished and respected actor for over three decades, with a breadth of work across both film and television. Beginning alongside his real-life older brother Macaulay in the “Home Alone” franchise, his most notable roles have included the rebellious and sardonic teenager in the dramedy “Igby Goes Down” (2002) and the scene-stealing gay roommate in the cult-classic “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” (2010).
“Succession” airs on Sundays on HBO.