Succession‘s future gets a candid update from Emmy-winning actor Jeremy Strong, who starred as Kendall Roy. The celebrated HBO dramedy accomplished a relatively rare distinction, bowing out at a time when both audiences and critics would likely have embraced another round of Roy family squabbles. The decision to end Succession before season 5 came from series creator Jesse Armstrong despite reluctance from HBO executives, as he felt like the story had arrived at a natural end.

In recent comments to PEOPLE, Strong talked about how Kendall “reached his terminal point” in the Succession season 4 finale. Even though Strong mentioned that the decision ultimately goes back to Armstong, he concedes: “For me, that’s something that is very happily put to rest.”

“I’m sure there’s a desire for more [Succession]. I would really pass that buck to [creator] Jesse Armstrong. But I think in terms of the role that I played, he came to his terminal point. So for me, that’s something that is very happily put to rest.”

Succession Ended At The Right Time

The Show Didn’t Overstay Its Welcome

The brilliance of the season 4 ending is that the show is not overly sentimental about Succession‘s cast of characters. There is a lovely section where the Roy siblings seem to bond, but otherwise, the episode doesn’t deviate from an established formula that informs the show’s world. Waystar Royco isn’t demolished, no one is killed, and no one goes to prison. In some ways, it’s a very typical big episode of Succession.

Alliances are made, and others are broken. In Succession season 4’s ending, Kendall looks lost and without purpose. It makes the finality all the more stark, suggesting that the Roy siblings are caught in a cycle they can’t break free of. Succession could have continued after season 4, but the Roys’ battles and their variations had begun to wear thin. The show will be remembered most fondly for knowing when to end. That’s a particular virtue at a time when anything remotely successful faces pressure to become a franchise.

It’s even more impressive because Succession has potential spinoff avenues, whether a separate show that centers around Kendall’s assistant Jess, played by Juliana Canfield, or a prequel of some kind. Armstrong, however, has remained consistent about the fact that it was better to leave the Roy family behind than to turn their story into something that it’s not for the sake of prolonging its popularity.

Source: PEOPLE