Rupert Murdoch is reportedly in a secret legal battle with his four eldest children over the future of his media empire, in a turn of events that has sparked comparisons with the battles of the Roy family in the hit HBO drama Succession.
According to sealed court documents seen by the New York Times, Murdoch, 93, is arguing that his eldest son, Lachlan, should have sole control of the family’s investments in a move that would in effect freeze out his other children – James, Elisabeth and Prudence.
Succession chronicles the power play between the children of a fictional media mogul, Logan Roy, after he has a stroke on his 80th birthday; his three sons, Kendall, Roman and Connor, and daughter, Shiv, all have varying ambitions and are frequently caught up in toxic battles for their tyrannical father’s approval.
Perhaps Lachlan curried favour by performing a rap celebrating his father’s life or maybe James fell into disrepute after he oversaw a failed rocket launch – but it has been suggested Murdoch’s move was prompted by fears the three apparent exiles would soften the rightwing politics of the organisation.
Here we take a look at the real-life row – and how it compares to the fiction of Succession.
‘The good thing about having a family that doesn’t love you is you learn to live without it’ – Connor Roy
Rupert Murdoch is one of the most well known business magnates in the world. A billionaire, he built a media empire now comprising News Corp and Fox Corporation. His son Lachlan, 52, is chair of News Corp, and executive chair and CEO of Fox Corporation. His son James, 51, formerly held positions with the family business but cut ties in 2020. His daughter Elisabeth, 55, also held positions with businesses affiliated to her father’s empire and most recently founded her own production company, Sister Pictures. Prudence Murdoch MacLeod, 65, who is a half-sister of the other three, held several directorial roles with her father’s businesses and is now a board member of Times Newspapers Ltd.
When Succession begins Logan Roy (played by Brian Cox) is the 80-year-old billionaire founder and CEO of Waystar Royco. His second and third eldest sons Kendall (Jeremy Strong) and Roman (Kieran Culkin) hold positions at the company. His daughter, Shiv (played by Sarah Snook), is introduced as a political consultant but later is brought into the fold of Waystar Royco. Logan’s eldest son Connor (Alan Ruck) is not involved in the business and provides some comic relief in the show.
‘It’s just a time-saving expression for a collection of financial interests’ – Logan Roy
The reach of Murdoch’s media portfolio is huge. News Corp owns the publisher of the Wall Street Journal, the Sun, the Times and the Australian, as well as the book publisher HarperCollins. Fox Corporation owns the influential US conservative news and comment channel Fox News, as well as Fox Entertainment which produces TV shows and movies.
Waystar Royco owns the Fox News-like American Television Network, better known as ATN, which is criticised in the show for its conservative bias and is the most watched news channel in the US. Waystar also owns newspapers including “the NY Globe”. It also owns movie studios, as Murdoch once did through 21st Century Fox.
‘I blame myself. I spoiled you. And now you’re fucked’ – Logan Roy
The family trust is said to hand equal control to all four of Murdoch’s eldest children in the event of his death. While the trust is reported to be “irrevocable”, it is believed to contain a provision allowing for changes to be made in good faith if they have the sole purpose of benefiting all of the beneficiaries.
The future control of Waystar Royco is the driving force of Succession. Kendall believes he is the likely successor to the business but is let down when his father refuses to resign. At various points in the show’s four seasons Kendall, Roman and Shiv all take up senior posts in the company. The plot thickens as various outside parties – most significantly the company GoJo, owned by Lukas Matsson (portrayed by Alexander Skarsgård) – bid for Waystar.
‘Life is not knights on horseback. It’s a number on a piece of paper. It’s a fight for a knife in the mud’ – Logan Roy
The Murdoch trust is reportedly subject to a legal battle. Lawyers for the patriarch are arguing that a “lack of consensus” among the children “would impact the strategic direction at both companies including a potential reorientation of editorial policy and content”. He reportedly sought to change the terms late last year, according to the New York Times. The Nevada probate commissioner reportedly ruled that he could amend the trust if he could show he was acting in good faith and for the sole benefit of his heirs. Murdoch’s lawyers have reportedly said they are trying to protect James, Elisabeth and Prudence, arguing that divided control could undermine the health of the business and damage their inheritance.
In one of the most memorable scenes in Succession, in the final episode of season three, Kendall, Roman and Shiv are frozen out of company negotiations having been stabbed in the back by Shiv’s husband, Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen). The three had recalled a clause in Logan’s divorce settlement granting the children veto power over any change in company control. But Logan is tipped off by Tom, and Logan tells them he has renegotiated the divorce agreement, in effect depriving the children of company control.
‘I love you, but you are not serious people’ – Logan Roy
James and Elisabeth Murdoch have at various times in the past been viewed as potential candidates to take over the running of the Murdoch empire. However, both have drifted from the business in recent years and, in James’s case, with some acrimony.
James and his wife, Kathryn Hufschmid, issued a statement criticising the climate crisis coverage across his father’s media portfolio, while James also accused the US media of “propagating lies” in the lead-up to the storming of the Capitol by Donald Trump supporters on 6 January 2021, in a clear attack against Fox News.
Elisabeth has also been critical of her father’s media assets – after the UK phone-hacking scandal which ultimately led to the closure of the Murdoch-owned News of the World. She also hosted a fundraiser for Barack Obama in 2008.
Logan’s mistrust of his children is less about politics and more about personality, and possibly misogyny in the case of Shiv. Logan views Kendall as weak, Roman as immature and Shiv as irrational. Logan’s tyranny comes in part from his constant changing of his mind, giving with one hand, taking with the other, in an attempt to keep them all constantly at his side, willing to do his bidding.
‘You’re my boy. You’re my number one boy’ – Logan Roy
Lachlan Murdoch is seen as the most conservative of Murdoch’s children and his father is arguing that his political beliefs are essential to maintaining the value of the right-leaning media company. He became chair of News Corporation and Fox Corporation, the parent company of Fox News, last November after his father announced he was ending his seven-decade run.
Kendall often appears to be the future heir in Succession but ultimately all the children are strung along, and all of them “lose”. In the show’s devastating finale all three are cut out of Waystar Royco as it is acquired by GoJo. None other than Tom Wambsgan, Shiv’s obsequious husband, is handed the role of CEO of the US arm. In one of the most memorable moments, Kendall screams “I am the eldest boy” as he realises the company and the future he thought was nailed on are slipping from his grasp.
