Kendall Turns to Fikret in His Times of Need—We Explain Fikret's 'Succession' Journey
May 15 2023, Published 8:35 a.m. ET
Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Succession Season 4, Episode 8.
While we’re the most concerned with the Roy siblings in Succession, other characters in their periphery continue to pop up. In the final moments of Succession’s harrowing Season 4, Episode 8, we’re reminded of Fikret. The episode forces us to relive the 2016 Presidential election but through the eyes of the wealthy few in power, which is why returning to Fikret at the end is so important.
At the end of the episode, Kendall (Jeremy Strong) says, “Some people just can’t cut a deal, Fikret.” But who is Fikret, and what is his meaning in the HBO series?
The meaning of Fikret in ‘Succession’ circles back to the working class.
It’s easy to forget who the many underlings of the Roy family are, but how can we forget Fikret? As early as the series’ pilot, Fikret is Kendall’s driver. He first appears in the episode “Celebration” when he drives Kendall, who is rapping and punching the seat to a Beastie Boys song. We might even remember Fikret telling Kendall, “You’re the man, Mr. Roy.”
Fikret is seen again in Season 1, Episode 2, “S--t Show at the F--k Factory,” when he drives Kendall and Jess to the hospital to see Logan. Kendall begs Fikret to find a way around the traffic. While he’s never seen again, Fikret is mentioned in Season 3 when Kendall tries to cut a deal with Logan to get out of the family business. “I keep Fikret, Jess, and I’m gone,” Kendall begs. But of course, Logan denies Kendall’s request.
Clearly, Fikret is important to Kendall. It’s unclear how long Fikret has been Kendall’s driver, but it’s completely possible that, in a way, they’ve grown up together. And considering how many iconic scenes and significant conversations Kendall has had in the back of his car, Fikret knows quite a bit about his boss.
In Season 4, Episode 8, Kendall and Roman (Kieran Culkin) back the future presidency of alt-right personality Jeryd Mencken because he’s willing to work with them, unlike Democratic nominee Daniel Jiménez. Although Kendall wanted Jiménez to win ideologically, Mencken made more sense for the business. And because Fikret is in the working class and could possibly be an immigrant, the election results could directly affect Fikret.
At the end of the episode, when Kendall gets into the car, he tells his longtime driver, “Some people just can’t cut a deal, Fikret.” This is, in some ways, just Kendall venting to his driver. But in other ways, this is a clear example of class division; for Kendall, the election is about the deal, but for Fikret, it could be about his livelihood. This could be Kendall’s way of apologizing to Fikret, although that seems unlikely since Kendall is thinking about his daughter.
Kendall’s driver in ‘Succession,’ Fikret, is played by Greg Harvey.
Greg Harvey is actually much more of a stuntman than an actor, but he does have some acting credits to his name. However, as a stunt coordinator, stuntman, driver, and everything else dangerous, his work is seen in iconic projects, such as Manifest, The Dark Knight Rises, Search Party, The Blacklist, and much more.
But, of course, there’s no one better than Fikret. In his words, “You’re the man, Mr. Fikret!”
New episodes of Succession air every Sunday at 9 p.m. EST on HBO.
