Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Names and faces
■ The creator of the hit HBO series “Succession” says the fourth season, set to premiere next month, will be its last. Jesse Armstrong told The New Yorker this week that he wanted the show’s many fans to know the end was approaching. “I quite like that idea, creatively, because then the audience is just able to enjoy everything as it comes, without trying to figure things out, or perceiving things in a certain way once they know it’s the final season,” Armstrong said. “Succession” follows a wealthy family that owns a media conglomerate and struggles to maintain its power. It stars Brian Cox as the Roy family patriarch and Jeremy Strong as one of his children who connive to succeed their father. The show has won 13 Emmy Awards, including several for Armstrong for writing and drama series honors in 2020 and 2022. “I’ve never thought this could go on forever. The end has always been kind of present in my mind,” Armstrong said. “From Season 2, I’ve been trying to think: Is it the next one, or the one after that, or is it the one after that?” Armstrong may not leave all the characters behind. While he said ending the show now will result in a “meaty” resolution, he’s open to revisiting some of the characters in another project. “When I’ve talked to some of my collaborators, like: Maybe there’s another part of this world we could come back to, if there was an appetite?”
■ Actor Alec Baldwin has pleaded innocent to felony charges of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie and waived his first formal court appearance. Baldwin and a weapons supervisor were charged last month with felony involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of Halyna Hutchins, who died shortly after being wounded during rehearsals at a ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe in October 2021. In court documents filed Thursday, Baldwin agreed to forgo a hearing to have his rights explained to him. A judge set conditions of release that allow Baldwin to have limited contact with potential witnesses in connection with plans to complete the filming of “Rust.” Prosecutors and defense attorneys are preparing for a likely preliminary hearing within a few months to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed to trial. Other provisions of Baldwin’s pretrial release include a prohibition on consuming alcohol and against any possession of weapons.