Itโs all systems go for Industry season 4 at HBO; the renewal order for Mickey Down & Konrad Kayโs prestige series announced ahead of the latest season finale.
Since then, much like the staffing of Pierpoint itself, the principal cast has undergone some seismic changes.
This article will be updated as details emerge.
Unsurprisingly to anyone who binged its greatest season yet, HBO has renewed Industry for a fourth season.
โFor three seasons, Industry has been unflinching in its examination of ambition and class, solidifying itself as a marquee HBO drama,โ said Francesca Orsi, Executive VP of HBO Programming (and HBO Drama Series & Films boss).
โUnder Mickey and Konradโs singular vision, this twisted, thrilling look at London finance has redefined the contemporary workplace show. Weโre so excited that viewers and critics have recognised season 3 as bigger and better than ever, buoyed by sublime performances from our unparalleled cast.โ
Series creators Mickey Down & Konrad Kay added: โWe are beyond thrilled and grateful to HBO, the incredible team at Bad Wolf. And our phenomenal cast and crew for their continued belief in Industry. and for allowing us to grow as creators, writers and now directors whilst taking the show to new heights.โ
โWe canโt wait to dive deeper and deliver the best season yet in Industry season 4.โ
Hereโs what we know about Industry season 4 so far.
While Industry had long maintained a devoted following, it was nowhere near the legions of fans commanded by its fellow flagship HBO properties, e.g. Game of Thrones / House of the Dragon, The Last of Us, The White Lotus.
That all changed with season 3.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the finance drama โ described as the โmissing linkโ between Succession and Euphoria โ improved its viewership by 40% compared to its season 2 performance, averaging 1.6 million cross-platform viewers per episode since premiering; with the number likely to have increased, as HBO measures viewing for 90 days from a premiere.
And keep in mind: this is for HBO/Max alone (the latter of which arrives on Aussie shores this year). When you factor in the viewership of Australiaโs Foxtel/Foxtel GO and Binge, as well as all the eyeballs in the UK, itโs nothing to sneeze at.
So what happened?
As weโve previously noted, where most peddle empty claims about โupping the ante,โ โall-new stakes,โ and being โbigger/better,โ in their third season as ex-bankers-turned-showrunners, creators Mickey Down & Konrad Kay actually put their money where their mouths are.
Wonderfully straddling whatever taxonomical fence divides a saucy Wall Street Journal exposรฉ and full-blown cinema; almost every episode feels like its own feature-length film in both scale and pathos.
โSeason 1 was more of a vibe than a serious TV show. More of a feeling that we were trying to get across, carried along by the music and the acting. And we felt like our writing needed to catch up to the standard of HBO,โ Konrad Kay told B.H.
โIf you were put off by how hermetically sealed the first season was and how inaccessible it was because it was about finance and it was basically in a foreign language, then you could come to season 3 having never seen the show.โ
โAnd be like, โWell, I like the mystery at the centre of it, and I like the fact that theyโre writing about newspapers because I understand them and I understand what an IPO is.โโ
After the third seasonโs finale, there is zero doubt that Industry season 4 will once again entail something of a reinvention.
With every key character having now parted ways with Pierpoint & Co (since renamed Al-Mโiraj Pierpoint after an eleventh-hour acquisition); and a good chunk of the chessboardโs players now outside of London, the drama practically has no choice but to evolve.
Letโs get into it.
The not-so-loose ends
The Harper & Eric of It All Despite having mostly gone their separate ways for an entire season, Harper (Myhaโla Herrold) and Eric (Ken Leung) havenโt seen the last of each other. In a twisted way, theyโre the only friend they have in this lonely world. And to quote Eric himself: โMoney tames the beastโฆ the end of the story is money.โ Perhaps heโll declare for Team Leviathan Alpha in season 4.
A Convenient Marriage Yasmin (Marisa Abuela) is as Yasmin does. And what she did was develop survival skills at the detriment of Rob (Harry Lawtey). Now that sheโs chosen to shack up with Sir Henry Muck (Kit Harrington), sheโll remain buttressed in unearned wealth, cocaine, privilege, and the British ruling class; even without her dearly departed daddy (Adam Levy). Any bets on how long this one lasts?
Uncut Rishi The only thing worse than being jobless and divorced is to be jobless and divorced with half a million in gambling debt and a dead wife (whose brains were splattered by your loan shark schoolmate Vinay). This one might be hard to explain to the police for poor old Rishi (Sagar Radia) โ assuming our troubled single dad makes it out of that apartment alive.
โWe want to write a corporate thriller,โ Down teased to an audience during a Deadline x HBO FYC event at The Times Centre last December; citing Tony Gilroyโs Michael Clayton starring George Clooney as core inspiration.
โ[Gilroy] directed and wrote the greatest corporate thriller of all time.โ
But most intriguinglyโฆ
Moving to America?
With the absent Gus (David Jonsson) canonically kicking it in California, where Rob seems to be thriving with his psilocybin start-up; and the explicit story set-up involving billionaire hedge fund manager Jesse Bloom now out of prison, America seemed like the natural move.
โWho knows? Who knows? Itโs very hard to answer that,โ Mickey Down told GQ when prompted about the possibility.
This could also be where Harper and Eric could find themselves, given theyโre native New Yorkers. Although Down hasnโt exactly ruled out returning to London.
โThere is something about London and, especially in the last season, our exploration of London, and in particular London high society, which I think is unique to this show and I would hate to lose,โ he continued.
โAnd I think there are other shows that have done similar things in the US, but there is nothing in the UK which feels real and authentic and is actually giving you a sort of a firsthand, I would say, insight into that world. And I think thatโs probably what you do for Industry season 4.โ
And given the now-confirmed fate of Harry Lawteyโs character, perhaps this might be off the books completely. At least for now. More on this momentarilyโฆ
The season 3 finale was written as if it was a series finale
โWe want the finale to act as a satisfying conclusion if the show was to never come back,โ said Down while appearing on IndieWireโsToolkit podcast.
โIt doesnโt have to be satisfying in that everything in the story is wrapped up, but it has to be emotionally satisfying.โ
The same approach was apparently taken for the season 2 finale. Although itโs safe to say the most recent closing chapter certainly feels moreโฆ conclusive. Similar to Harperโs firing due to her forged college transcript.
Down added: โI thought it would be awful, I think if we wrote like an enormous cliffhanger and then the show would never came back.โ
โWe did a kind of an extremist version, I mean we literally almost laughing at that very idea. We scorched the Earth. Itโs satisfyingly finale,โ said Kay.
Do we know the Industry season 4 cast members?
Assuming nobody elseโs schedules become too packed with music biopics and DC movies, the Industry season 4 cast will officially re-welcome the following:
Marisa Abela as Yasmin Kara-Hanani
Myhaโla Herrold as Harper Stern
Sagar Radia as Rishi Ramdani
Ken Leung as Eric Tao
Kit Harington as Henry Muck
Miriam Petche as Sweetpea Golightly
The door is also wide open for the likes of Sarah Goldberg as Harperโs Leviathan Alpha business partner Petra Koenig; Irfan Shamji as Anraj Chabra; Roger Barclay as Otto Mostyn; Andrew Havill as Lord Norton; plus given the season 3 finaleโs closing scenes, the increasingly in-demand David Jonsson as Augustus โGusโ Sackey and Jay Duplass as recently freed hedge fund manager Jesse Bloom โ both of whom were notable absences in the third season.
The one person we shouldnโt expect to return, however, is Harry Lawtey at the fan-favourite battler Robert Spearing; who departs due to a combination of scheduling conflicts (heโs to star opposite Russell Crowe in the Cold War thriller Billion Dollar Spy) and a nicely wrapped character arc.
โUltimately I feel like Iโm in a place where Iโve said everything I had to say with a character, and I think both me and the writers felt mutually happy with where we left him,โ Lawtey explained in an interview with The Telegraph.
โThere was actually a stage direction after my final line, in my final scene of the show, which literally read: โOn Robert โ transformation complete.โ And that sat really well with me.โ
โNow I feel unmoored, but in a really good way. And ready for the next chapter.โ
As for the fresh faces, at the time of this writing, they are as follows:
Max Minghella (The Social Network, The Handmaidโs Tale, Babylon)as Whitney Halberstram โ CFO & Founder of Tender, โa payment processor entering a growth phaseโ
Mad Men alum Kiernan Shipka as Hayley Clay โ executive assistant at Tender
Jack Farthing as Edward Smith โ troublemaker and long-time friend of Henryโs (Harington)
Jimoh as Kwabena Bannerman โ trader at the dark Lord Ottoโs (Barclay) Mostyn Asset Management
Amy James-Kelly as Jennifer Bevan โ newly promoted Minister in the Labour government
When is the Industry season 4 release date (Australia or otherwise)?
In line with Mickey Down & Konrad Kayโs historic production rhythms, weโre potentially staring down the barrel of another two-year wait: meaning August 2026.
For context, season 1 premiered in November 2020, season 2 on August/September 2022, and season 3 this past August. That should be plenty of time for the fellas to figure out what the story resembles outside of the Pierpoint trading floor and potentially London.
According to Variety, cameras begin rolling on season 4 this month.
After stretching his legs with companies such as The Motley Fool and the odd marketing agency, Garry joined Boss Hunting in 2019 as a fully-fledged Content Specialist. In 2021, he was promoted to News Editor.
Garry proudly retains a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, black bruises from Muay Thai, as well as a black belt in all things pop culture. Drop him a line at [email protected]
