All the Bells Say

"**All the Bells Say**" is the ninth and final episode of the third season of *Succession* and twenty-ninth of the series overall. It premiered on December 12, 2021 on HBO and HBO Max. It was written by Jesse Armstrong and directed by Mark Mylod.

## Premise

Upon learning Matsson has his own vision for the future GoJo-Waystar relationship, Shiv and Roman team up to manage the potential fallout – as Logan quietly considers his options. Later, the siblings' "intervention" prompts Connor to remind them of his position in the family, while Greg continues his attempts to climb the dating ladder with a contessa.

## Plot synopsis

Kendall is recovering after nearly drowning in the pool. Gerri reports that due to heavy fines from the DOJ and Matsson manipulating the market, GoJo's market cap has exceeded Waystar's. Logan and Roman travel to meet with Matsson in person, who proposes that they reverse the deal: GoJo would buy Waystar with Matsson as CEO, and Logan will exit with a settlement. Logan declines, but stays to negotiate further. Roman returns to the wedding.

Back in Tuscany, the other Roy siblings sit down for an intervention with Kendall, believing that his pool incident was an attempted suicide. Kendall dismisses their concerns, insisting that it was just an accident, as well as accuses them of projecting. Connor learns of Logan's plans of merging with GoJo, which could jeopardize his presidential campaign, but he is more upset that he was left out of previous discussion. Kendall then refers to himself as the eldest son which upsets Connor even further and he lashes out at his siblings, then storming off. He proposes to Willa once again, who this time says "fuck it" and agrees to get married. Karl and Frank arrive in Italy to assist Logan in the GoJo deal.

Roman notices that Gerri, Kerry, and some others are acting strange amid concerns about the GoJo deal. During the reception, he alerts Shiv about Matsson's proposal to buy Waystar. The two then inform Kendall, who then becomes overwhelmed and breaks down, feeling like a failure as both a father and whistleblower against the company. He then confesses the truth of Andrew Dodds to his siblings. Shiv and Roman comfort him, and Roman insists that Kendall does not deserve full blame for the incident.

Roman, Shiv, and Kendall then rediscover a clause in Logan and Caroline's divorce agreement that grants the children right to vote during any change in company control. With this, the three of them decide to band together and form a majority vote against Logan. Shiv informs Tom of their plans, who then subtly informs Greg of "major changes" happening at Waystar and offers him a deal, to which Greg reluctantly agrees.

The children arrive at Logan's villa to confront their father. Logan refuses to halt the sale, insisting that now is the right time. Logan attempts to turn the children against each other, including asking Roman to kick Kendall out of the room, but they resist. Logan argues that this will all be a teachable moment for them. He once again preys on Roman, but Shiv looms over, reminding him that Logan can't be trusted. Roman, although clearly stressed, stands his ground, looking over to Gerri for support. Logan is growing increasingly angry with his children, and mocks Shiv when she argues that he needs them for the supermajority vote.

Kerry then tells Logan that "it's all done", and he brings her phone over. On the phone, Caroline reveals to the children that their divorce agreement has been renegotiated, and the children no longer have any voting power, effectively leaving them completely powerless. Roman begs his father to reconsider, but Logan declares that everything has been settled and storms out. Roman then begs Gerri that she do something, but she declines, as the buyout is in her best interest financially. Tom arrives and runs into Logan, who gives him a warm smile and a pat on the back, and Shiv realizes that he had betrayed her and her brothers.

## Cast

* Nicholas Braun as Greg Hirsch
* Kieran Culkin as Roman Roy
* Dagmara Domińczyk as Karolina Novotney (credit only)
* Peter Friedman as Frank Vernon
* Justine Lupe as Willa Ferreyra
* Matthew Macfadyen as Tom Wambsgans
* David Rasche as Karl
* Alan Ruck as Connor Roy
* J. Smith-Cameron as Gerri Kellman
* Fisher Stevens as Hugo Baker (credit only)
* Sarah Snook as Shiv Roy
* Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy
* Harriet Walter as Caroline Collingwood
* Alexander Skarsgård as Lukas Matsson
* Pip Torrens as Peter Munion
* Scott Nicholson as Colin
* Zoë Winters as Kerry
* Dasha Nekrasova as Comfry
* Ella Rumpf as Contessa
* Tomas Arana as Laurie
* Quentin Morales as Iverson Roy
* Swayam Bhatia as Sophie Roy

## Quotes

* **Tom Wambsgans:** Do you want a deal with the devil? **Greg Hirsch:** What am I gonna do with a soul anyways? Souls are boring! Boo, souls! Of course!

## Trivia

* Armstrong cited Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox, AT&T's acquisition of WarnerMedia, and the failed AOL-Time Warner merger as inspirations for the storyline.
* With four wins and 10 total nominations, "All the Bells Say" is the most awarded episode of the third season.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Succession Ep 9: All the Bells Say | Official Website for the HBO Series | HBO.com
2. ↑ Shows A-Z - succession on hbo | TheFutonCritic.com
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 *Succession*: Season 3, Episode 9: "**All the Bells Say**"
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Succession | Official Website for the HBO Series | HBO.com
5. ↑ Shows A-Z - succession on hbo | TheFutonCritic.com
6. ↑ 'Succession' Creator Jesse Armstrong on the Explosive Season 3 Finale - Variety
7. ↑ Succession - Emmy Awards, Nominations and Wins | Television Academy (emmys.com)
8. ↑ American Cinema Editors 2022 Eddie Awards Nominations – The Hollywood Reporter
9. ↑ DGA Awards For TV Settle The ‘Succession’ Direction Question – IndieWire
10. ↑ ‘This Is Us,’ ‘Succession’ lead 2nd HCA TV Awards nominations for Broadcast Network and Cable - AwardsWatch