Warning: Contains SPOILERS for the Succession season 4 finale!
A TikTok user was able to predict who would be at the helm of Waystar at the end of Succession‘s highly anticipated series finale using one simple hint hidden in plain sight. Succession premiered in 2018 and has gone on to become one of the most critically acclaimed and beloved television shows of its era, having won 13 Emmy Awards and five Golden Globes during its four-season run. However, while there is certainly demand, there are currently no plans for season 5 of Succession.
One TikToker, NameBerry, was able to successfully predict that Logan’s successor would be Tom Wambsgans using nothing but the character’s surname. Check out the video below:
The TikTok points out that unusual surnames typically serve a specific purpose in a TV show. The video theorizes that the name Wambsgans could come from professional baseball player Bill Wambsgans who played from 1914-1926. Wambsgans is famous for completing the only unassisted triple play in World Series history, taking out three players. The TikTok correctly predicts that Wambsgans would win out over the three Roy siblings.
Why Tom Ended Succession As Waystar CEO
Tom Wambsgans ultimately winning the game was not one of the more popular theories prior to the finale, but according to Succession creator Jesse Armstrong, Tom had been anointed in his mind for “quite a while.” Armstrong explained that even though Tom is not the most imposing or powerful individual, he represented the type of underhanded corporate operator that manages to make themselves useful to people with real power, thereby increasing their own power as well.
Tom’s flexible loyalties caused friction between him and his wife, Shiv Roy, but they were also the reason he was able to rise up in the company so quickly and stay there even after the death of his most powerful supporter, Logan Roy. Lukas Matsson offered Tom the job as CEO of Waystar not because he thinks Tom is smart and capable, but rather because he knows Tom doesn’t have any true desire to fight for power and would instead serve as a reliable figurehead who follows marching orders.
Shiv’s decision to torpedo the siblings’ plans by voting for the GoJo deal and thereby removing any chance of the Roys maintaining control of their father’s company was partially driven by an infantile desire to keep her brother from having what she couldn’t. Another factor in crowning Tom was that during their big blowout about the vote, Kendall, Roman, and Shiv all demonstrated why they were ill-suited for the top job: erratic behavior, apathy, and an inflated sense of self-worth.
