Sarah Snook on playing Shiv in HBO’s ‘Succession’

Episode notes

(Photo: HBO)

Odds are, you know actor Sarah Snook from her role on HBO’s Succession – one of the most acclaimed TV dramas in the last decade.

She plays Siobhan Roy, but to her friends and family, it’s just “Shiv.” She’s the youngest child and the only daughter in an ultra-wealthy family. The patriarch, Logan Roy, is the head of a large media conglomerate, Waystar Royco.

Logan Roy is aging and can’t run the company forever. Who will take over? And what are they willing to do for it?

In the first season, other members of the family fight among themselves, hoping to be the next to lead the family empire. At first, she’s happy to stay above the fray, working in politics. But like pretty much every character on Succession, it doesn’t take long for the cracks to show.

The show is currently airing it’s fourth and final season.

Linda Holmes, one of the terrific hosts of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, talked with Sarah in 2020 about what it’s like to play one of the most fascinating, complex and confounding characters on television today.

In this episode...

Jesse Thorn

Host

Kevin Ferguson

Senior Producer

Jesus Ambrosio

Producer

Richard Robey

Maximum Fun Producer

Daniel Huecias

Maximum Fun Production Fellow

Guests

Sarah Snook

About the show

Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.

Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney’s, which called it “the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world.” Since April 2013, the show has been distributed by NPR.

If you would like to pitch a guest for Bullseye, please CLICK HERE. You can also follow Bullseye on Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook. For more about Bullseye and to see a list of stations that carry it, please click here.