The fourth season of HBO‘s Industry featured some bing shake-ups in the tone and focus of the series, as well as the exit of at least one major cast-member. But as of Industry Season 4, Episode 6 “Dear Henry” it seems like another main cast-member has left the series. Spoilers past this point, but did Ken Leung leave Industry? Was that just Eric Tao’s final episode?
There’s a lot that goes down in the hour, but to distill it simply — well, as simply as possible — all season long Eric and Harper Stern (Myha’la) have joined forces in the new company of SternTao and worked to take down Tender, a banking app that is built on a house of lies. Thanks to a powerhouse presentation by Harper, they were well on their way to revealing the company for what it is (i.e., nothing), but there’s a bit of a hitch: Eric slept with an underage prostitute named Dolly (Skye Degruttola). And Whitney Halberstram (Max Minghella) had footage of the assignation, which he attempted to use as blackmail.
Instead, Eric pushed through and confronted Whitney live on CNN, successfully making the case that Tender should go through a new audit and essentially falling on his own sword in the process. While Tender is falling apart and Whitney seems to be fleeing the country at the end of the episode, Eric knows that at some point that blackmail could come out and hurt Harper.
So after all this has gone down, back at the SternTao office/hotel suite, Eric calls Harper into the office, and on the brink of sobbing, he kicks things over to his lawyer: he’s giving the entirety of SternTao to Harper.
He doesn’t explain why – because he had sex with an underage girl and is a liability that could bring everything tumbling down – but adds that his initial investment of $10 million he made in SternTao be placed into a trust for his daughters.
“Watching you present, I thought I was incapable of feeling pride for anyone but myself,” Eric tells Harper. “I’m really… I’m really glad you proved me wrong.”
Harper doesn’t accept this, and demands to know what Eric is protecting them from, but he doesn’t want her to remember him that way, i.e. having sex with an underage girl. Harper signs the papers, sobbing herself. “I will always remember you like this,” she spits in Eric’s face, and marches out of the room.
So, Did Ken Leung Leave Industry? Is Eric Tao Gone From The HBO Series?
Yes, it sure seems like Ken Leung and Eric Tao have left Industry at the end of the episode. Driving that home is the final shot of the episode, which is Ken Leung walking away from the camera down a road as the credits roll and “Both Sides Now” by Joni Mitchell plays on the soundtrack. Leung is literally walking away from Industry at the end of the episode, which seems about as clear as you can get.
And without spoiling anything, we can say he won’t be back in the final two episodes of the season (though you will get a little glimpse of some of Eric). Could he return for future seasons? Certainly, if showrunners Mickey Down & Konrad Kay have a story to tell.
But this week’s episode thematically dealt with the idea of death by suicide… While Eric doesn’t actually kill himself at the end of the hour, earlier he explained that his id and his drive for monetary gain are all he has, and interchangeable. In one fell swoop, he took all of that, giving the company to Harper and his money to his daughters. He in all but body killed himself.
Adding fuel to the fire, his arc, to mentor and guide Harper (and often clash with her) just isn’t necessary anymore… That’s what Eric saw as he watched her present at the conference, and that’s what the show saw as well. He needed to “die” so that Harper could live and thrive. Eric is done growing. Harper has just begun to figure out how to integrate humanity into her money monster personality. Without him, she has the possibility to become a real, full person. Eric has missed that chance; or rather, found it here at the end. So goodbye, Eric Tao. Here’s hoping you find those ice cream castles in the air.
Industry Season 4 Premiere Dates And Episode Guide:
New episodes of Industry premiere Sundays on HBO and HBO Max at 9 p.m. ET. Here’s what we expect from the full list of episodes in Industry Season 4 with premiere dates.
- Sunday, January 11, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 1 – “PayPal of Bukkake”
- Sunday, January 18, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 2 – “The Commander and The Grey Lady”
- Sunday, January 25, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 3 – “Habseligkeiten”
- Sunday, February 1, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 4 – “1000 Yoots, 1 Marilyn”
- Sunday, February 8, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 5 – “Eyes Without a Face”
- Sunday, February 15, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 6 – “Dear Henry”
- Sunday, February 22, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 7 – “Points of Emphasis”
- Sunday, March 1, 2026: Industry, Season 4, Episode 8 – “Both, And” *Season Finale*
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