Nicholas Britell is making his TV show scoring debut on the upcoming HBO original series Succession. The political drama is created by Jesse Armstrong (In the Loop, Four Lions) and stars Brian Cox, Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, Nicholas Braun, Matthew Macfadyen, Hiam Abbas, Alan Ruck, Rob Yang, Parker Sawvers, and Peter Friedman. The show is described as the saga of the Roys, a fictional American global-media family that is not only rich and powerful but also powerfully dysfunctional. Armstrong is also executive producing the project with Adam McKay & Will Ferrell (Talladega Nights, The Other Guys), Kevin Messick (Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters), Frank Rich (Veep) and Ilene S. Landress (GirlsThe Sopranos). Britell has previously scored the McKay-directed feature The Big ShortSuccession will premiere in 2018 on HBO.

As previously reported, Britell (Moonlight, Battle of the Sexes, Free State of the Jones) also has Gary Ross’ Ocean’s Eight starring Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett & Anne Hathaway coming up.

  1. Phillip M Johnson says:

    What is the name of the piano music played in the background of episode 2 of Succession. Sounds a little like Beethoven. I can’t get it out of my head. Please tell me the name so I can download it.
    Thanks, Phil

    • Mary Mc says:

      Beethoven’s piano Sonata Pathetique. It’s very similar and yet not the same. Really quite hypnotic!

    • elle says:

      It is Beethoven. Pathetique in c minor sonata. I cannot believe Beethoven is never mentioned in any article I’ve read on the theme tune. Seems like a huge omission.

  2. Miguel cabrera says:

    Necesito la cancion de fondo que suena con piano de fondo estilo bethoben de igual forma porfavor como se llama

  3. Leila Baillie says:

    Why the music of “Succession” is not available to buy on iTunes apple ?

  4. Susan Louer says:

    Who sang union song at the end of episode 6?

  5. JB says:

    Glad somebody’s finally credited this little guy called Beethoven for the piano theme… That doesn’t make the credit sequence music any less good, but still. The piano arpeggio is, consciously or unconsciously, lifted from Beethoven’s piano sonata n°8 in C minor, aka Pathétique, which can be heard towards the end of the Allegro.

  6. Anne says:

    It most certainly is the scale/theme, note for note, at the conclusion of Movement 1 of Pathetique, the actual notes were not even changed. The timing is different, expression is different, but absolutely the same notes, note for note.

  7. Alberto says:

    But not only… in 3rd season we can listen to the first bars of Beethoven’s third symphony, 2nd movement. I cannot simply understand why this is not properly quoted. Because the whole music has a beautifully inspiration in Beethoven atmosphere. The strings variations, piano variations, winds… is simply amazing and very well done. But this is necessarily to be told.