Given his immense wealth and power, why does Kendall steal batteries in Succession. In season 2, episode 2 “Vaulter,” there is a brief scene of Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) stealing a small pack of batteries from a convenience store without explanation. It is an unusual moment that is never touched upon again for the rest of the series. However, the small moment speaks to Kendall's state of mind at that point in his journey as well as the thing that has motivated him his whole life which explains why Kendall steals batteries in Succession.
Season 2 marks a change in Kendall’s complex characterization that leads directly to the end of Succession following him accidentally killing a young man in the season 1 finale while driving impaired. Kendall is haunted by his crime, and the pain is multiplied by the fact he knows his father is manipulating him with his guilt. In season 1, Kendall is obnoxious and overconfident, but season 2 sees him completely demoralized and browbeaten to the point that he barely thinks for himself. Kendall’s life has been a quest to obtain a modicum of power, and he’s had it all stripped away, and most painfully, he can’t tell anyone why.
Kendall Steals Batteries To Feel In Control
“Vaulter” ends a season 1 storyline, as one of Kendall’s original big projects for Waystar Royco is the imprudent acquisition of tech giant Vaulter. In one of the worst things Logan does to his kids, the Roy family patriarch orders that Waystar strip Vaulter for parts and tells Kendall to do it himself. Acquiring Vaulter is one of the few things Kendall actually accomplished in Succession and Logan destroys it. Kendall is forced to lie to Vaulter, and he terminates the entire division. It’s a vicious move that Kendall exacts with robotic unfeeling. He does it because his dad tells him to and that’s all that matters now.
Despite his wealth and position in a multi-billion dollar company, Kendall has no autonomy. When Kendall steals a pack of batteries from a convenience store, it’s an attempt to grasp some small amount of control. Just once, he would like to do something of his own volition, without the approval or instruction of Succession's most terrifying character. It’s a tiny gesture of self-determination, but Kendall has been brought so low, a small symbol of rebellion is all he can muster. Kendall then throws the batteries away as soon as he leaves the store. The theft was never about the prize; it was about feeling some semblance of power.
Kendall Knows He Can Always Fall Back On His Privilege
The characters in Succession get away with everything. Their only real fear is being shut out of Waystar. Nothing else really matters, and that goes for killing a waiter as much as it does for stealing a pack of batteries. Kendall, his siblings, and the Waystar higher-ups are protected by so many layers of power that even a decades-long abuse cover-up exposed in Succession's season 2 finale comes to nothing. In the world of Succession, characters feel good by taking from others and then avoiding any consequences, because of their immense power. Kendall may have overdosed on that feeling, but the batteries represent him still needing to feel that control.
Kendall's Lack Of Power Plays Into The Series Finale
The answer to why Kendall steals the batteries in Succession season 2 is certainly linked to his search for control, but it is not something he achieves by the end of the series. Though Kendall pushes back against his father at the end of season 2, he never escapes the control his father has over him. This continues to play into the final season of the show when even Logan Roy's devastating death doesn't give Kendall back that control.
The finale features a scene in which Kendall tells his siblings that Logan promised him the company as a young boy and comes to the realization of how unfair that was. Whether or not he full understands it at that moment, it shows that Logan has controlled Kendall his entire life with that promise of his future hanging over his head just out of reach. It made Kendall's whole life about getting that thing his father promised him, regardless if he really wanted it or not. The fact that it is taken from him at the last moment in the finale is part of the reason many fans wonder if Kendall dies after Succession ends.