Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy on Succession (Episode 4.07: “Tailgate Party”). Photo credit: David Russell.
Vitals
Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy, ousted media conglomerate exec and self-described defender of democracy
New York City, Fall 2020
Series: Succession
Episode: “Tailgate Party” (Episode 4.07)
Air Date: May 7, 2023
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman & Robert Pulcini
Creator: Jesse Armstrong
Costume Designer: Michelle Matland
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
It’s Election Day in America—a tense, centuries-old national tradition determining the fate of all those in the country not privileged enough to see politics as a mere game… which is exactly how the billionare Roy family experiences it on Succession, hosting their usual pre-election “tailgate party” fueled by money, gossip, and flag-waving finger foods.
Hosted at the apartment shared by Siobhan “Shiv” Roy (Sarah Snook) and her sleepy husband Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen), the party provides an opportunity for the Roys to rub elbows with political insiders and industry bigwigs to position themselves for success over the next four years.
“They’re not all crypto-fascist and right-wing nutjobs, we also have some venture capital Dems and centrist ghouls,” Kendall (Jeremy Strong) observes of their late father’s guest list. “Dad’s ideological range was… wide.”
This year, CE-bros Kendall and Roman (Kieran Culkin) are hoping to squash the company’s potential acquisition by rising tech giant GoJo and its eccentric chief, Lukas Mattson (Alexander Skarsgård), while eldest son and doomed presidential candidate Connor (Alan Ruck) continues clinging to his single-digit percentage points in Alaska. While Connor’s lead is generally laughable, it’s enough of an obstacle for the Roys’ preferred Republican candidate Jeryd Mencken that Roman advises his older half-sibling to concede and allow Mencken a clearer path to victory.
Of course, actual political outcomes matter very little to these movers and shakers with enough wealth and power to position them above the system, so the future of the nation is reduced to an opportunity to enjoy star-spangled sliders, cheap wine, and—for the lucky winner who correctly guesses the electoral count—a shipment of kettle corn.
USA! USA! USA!
What’d He Wear?
Costume designer Michelle Matland keeps Kendall considerably dressed down for Succession‘s fourth and final season, especially when compared to how the character spent earlier seasons typically in a suit and either a tie or open-neck white shirt. However, his fourth season wardrobe has consisted mostly of neutral layers, with casual jackets over crew-neck shirts. In his leather jacket and sweater, Kendall and the gold bomber-clad Mattson stand out among the sea of business casual partygoers.
“I’ll hit the libtards, you go help the Nazis,” Kendall determines after working out the strategic plans with Roman to grease the wheels on each end of the political spectrum. “These assholes in here? Our assholes!”
Of course, Kendall doesn’t wear just any leather jacket, turning again to one of his favorite designers, Tom Ford. The @successionfashion Instagram account specifically identified it as the “Collared Nappa Leather Jacket”, retailing at the time of production around $6,590.
Crafted from a luxurious taupe-brown nappa leather shell, the piece takes queues from classic flight jackets with its shirt-style spread collar, straight-zip front, and ribbed-knit cuffs and waist hem, while also distinguishing itself with unique details like raglan sleeves and slanted hand pockets with snap closures.
Kendall’s sweater, jeans, and sneakers appear to be the same that he had been wearing earlier in the episode with the custom Loro Piana sherpa jacket that he debuted in Norway two episodes earlier. Ribbed around the round crew-neck, cuffs, and hem, this pullover sweater is made from a taupe wool in a slightly cooler shade than his leather jacket but delivering an interesting textural contrast.
Kendall dressed for an aborted lunch with his siblings in the same sweater and jeans he would wear to that night’s pre-election party, albeit with one of his usual nondescript (but expensive) caps that he rudely keeps on inside the restaurant.
Kendall again wears black cotton slim-fit jeans for a party, just as he did when celebrating his 40th birthday a season earlier. His Loro Piana “Modular Walk” sneakers have all-brown uppers built on white rubber outsoles. The uppers are a taupe-brown nylon, contrasted with brown sueded trim around the toes, heels, and framing the partially concealed brown laces.
Strapped to his left wrist but hardly visible under the long sleeves of his sweater, Kendall appears to continue wearing the titanium Richard Mille RM67-01 that he had started wearing during this final season. This flat tonneau-shaped watch has a skeletonized dial that reveals both the automatic-winding calibre CRMA6 movement as well as a vertically oriented date display window at 5 o’clock. The hour index numerals are mounted on two parallel titanium rails attached directly to the movement. As identified by @successionfashion, this watch can cost up to $215,000.
Prop master Monica Jacobs shared with Tom Banham for Esquire that the Richard Mille watch had been specifically proposed by Jeremy Strong. “Kendall is always reaching for something big and bright and beautiful. To make himself feel good. A lot of the characters, they have this money, it’s old money for a lot of them. They’ve lived this lifestyle for so long. There’s certain flashy things that they like, but they know their style, they know what they want. Kendall comes from that world also, but he does want to reach out for something crazy. He wants to stand out so far.”
What to Imbibe
In the continuing battle for his sobriety, Kendall keeps his wits about him enough to avoid the funky “biodynamic” Spätburgunder that Tom pushes to the party guests after his ill-advised purchase of a German vineyard referenced a season earlier in “What It Takes” (Episode 3.06). “It’s light and fruity and it’s the kind of wine that separates the connoisseurs from the weekend Malbec morons,” Tom describes when pushing a glass onto Shiv’s ex Nate (Ashley Zukerman).
Instead, Kendall works the room with a glass of whiskey, neat… though it may be more of a prop for the benefit of socialization as I don’t think we ever actually see him drinking it.
How to Get the Look
Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy on Succession (Episode 4.07: “Tailgate Party”)
Without needing to dish out nearly $7,000 on a leather jacket, you can easily follow Kendall Roy’s smart casual party template with a comfortably broken-in sweater under a tonally coordinated flight jacket, playing with textural contrast and balancing the look with dark jeans and sneakers.
- Taupe-brown nappa leather flight jacket with shirt-style collar, straight-zip front, slanted single-snap side pockets, raglan sleeves with ribbed-knit cuffs, and ribbed-knit hem
- Tom Ford “Collared Nappa Leather Jacket”
- Taupe wool sweater with ribbed crew-neck, cuffs, and hem
- Black cotton slim-fit jeans
- Brown suede-and-textile sneakers with semi-concealed laces and white rubber outsoles
- Loro Piana “Modular Walk”
- Richard Mille RM67-01 flat titanium tonneau-shaped watch with skeeltonized dial
Do Yourself a Favor and…
Check out the series, currently streaming on Max.
For fans of the show’s style, I recommend following the great Instagram accounts @successionfashion and @successionfits.
The Quote
We watch history, we make history, and then—one day—we become it.
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