Who is Doderick? Lukas Matsson's offensive Succession tweet explained
The disgusting comment left the Waystar Royco bidder on shaky ground.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Succession season 4 episode 6.
It also includes discussion of the Holocaust, which somer readers may find distressing.
Eccentric entrepreneur Lukas Matsson (Alexander Skarsgård) crossed a line at the end of Succession season 4 episode 6, making a tasteless jab against Waystar Royco which threatens his plan to acquire the company.
The incident occurred as Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) was partway through his presentation of Living+, a new real estate venture that would extend the work of the family's cruise lines.
The ambitious – some might say unrealistic – proposal involves a range of state-of-the-art homes, where the comfort and health of the residents is placed at top priority.
Aimed primarily towards an older demographic, Kendall goes so far as to promise life-extending medication for those willing to pay the premium fee to spend their twilight years in a Living+ property.
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Matsson is staunchly against the proposal, having no interest in a real estate business himself, and views the Roy siblings as mere caretakers for a company he will soon own.
In a shocking demonstration of his disapproval, Matsson tweets a disgusting image while Kendall is still on stage, which compares the Living+ homes to the concentration camps of World War II.
The tweet pastes an image of Waystar Royco park mascot Doderick the Dog against a photo of a Nazi concentration camp, with the caption reading: "Doderick macht frei."
The slogan "arbeit macht frei" – which translates to "work sets you free" – was visible at the entrance of several Nazi camps including Auschwitz, where 1.1 million people were murdered during the Holocaust.
Though intended to derail the Royco presentation, the nasty comment instead provokes backlash against Matsson himself, who is convinced to take it down in a frantic phone call from Shiv (Sarah Snook).
Who is Doderick the Dog?
While the chilling slogan of the Nazi concentration camps is instantly recognisable to anyone with historical awareness, the mention of 'Doderick' could potentially cause some confusion among Succession viewers.
The name refers to a cartoon dog, who is one of the principle mascots of the Waystar Royco theme parks, with staff members often tasked with dressing up as the character in a giant suit to playfully greet visitors.
One such individual was none other than Greg Hirsch (Nicholas Braun), who we saw dressed as Doderick way back in season 1 episode 1 – titled 'Celebration'.
Of course, Greg was hopeless in the role, getting into the stuffy suit after getting high on marijuana and later falling to the ground and throwing up, after being harassed by a group of unruly children.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.