Ken Leung and Myha’la discuss Eric’s shocking exit in Industry season 4, the end of SternTao, and the Trump detail HBO edited out.

Season four of Industry delivered one of its most shocking turns yet — and even its stars didn’t see it coming.

Longtime co-stars Ken Leung and Myha’la revealed that, like fans, they were blindsided by Eric Tao’s apparent exit from the finance world in episode six, titled “Dear Henry.” The pivotal episode marks what seems to be the end of SternTao, the ambitious fund built by Eric and Harper Stern — and potentially the end of one of television’s most electric creative partnerships.

“This is Industry and HBO,” Myha’la said. “It’s got to end this way.”

No Scripts, No Spoilers

One of the show’s defining production quirks, according to the cast, is that showrunners Mickey Down and Konrad Kay do not distribute full-season scripts in advance.

That secrecy means actors discover major plot twists in real time.

“When I read episode six, I was like, ‘damn, they killed my bro,’” Myha’la said, describing her reaction to Eric’s forced exit.

In “Dear Henry,” just as SternTao appears poised to succeed in its takedown of the banking app Tender, Eric is blackmailed out of finance entirely. The fund collapses, and Harper is left stunned and betrayed — unaware of the real reason behind Eric’s departure.

The result is classic Industry: ambition undercut by consequence.

The End of SternTao

Eric’s departure marks not only a professional implosion but an emotional rupture.

Harper, who spent seasons clawing her way into power, finally seemed to have found something stable — a partnership that worked. The collapse of SternTao doesn’t just erase a business; it dismantles trust.

Myha’la admitted she felt deeply for Harper in that moment.

“I felt bad that Eric — understandably — couldn’t tell Harper what was going on. I felt bad for her because she was traumatized by the fact that she didn’t know the real reason.”

Yet both actors acknowledged that Industry was never going to allow a “nice moment” to survive untouched.

“A show like this is never going to let you keep the nice moment,” Myha’la said. “Every once in a while, I catch Mickey and Kon trying to put some kumbaya stuff in the show and HBO’s like, you know you can’t do this.”

A Creative Partnership That Clicked

Leung and Myha’la have shared the screen since the series began. Their first filmed scene was Harper’s interview — shot shortly after meeting for the first time.

Over four seasons, their on-screen dynamic has become one of the show’s emotional anchors. Off-screen, the actors describe a strong creative bond.

“When they work well together, their partnership,” Leung said of what he’d want from Eric and Harper’s careers.

Myha’la added jokingly, “The money? If I just had the money and didn’t have to deal with the rest of the job.”

That chemistry carried into one of season four’s most intimate moments — when Harper tells Eric her mother has died.

Myha’la worked closely with Down and Kay to reshape the scene. She wanted Harper to finally show real vulnerability — something the character rarely allows.

“She’s hardly ever 100 percent honest,” Myha’la said. “It felt like that was earned in this moment.”

Leung echoed that sentiment, noting that the scene felt closer to their real-life rapport than most of their confrontational exchanges.

Could Eric Return?

Eric’s final image is ambiguous: walking defiantly down the middle of a street, daring the world to react.

Leung describes it as purposeful yet open-ended.

“He’s on a vaguely reckless walk… There is a defiance to it. But the show doesn’t tell us where he’s going.”

Fans may wonder whether Eric could return, much like Rishi did after seeming written out in a previous season. Leung remained cautious.

“If the story wants him to,” he said. “I do have a hard time imagining what that would be.”

The Trump Figurine That Never Made It

In a surprising behind-the-scenes revelation, Leung disclosed that during season one, he placed a small Donald Trump figurine atop Eric’s Bloomberg monitor.

The prop did not survive post-production.

“They spent so much money erasing that from every frame,” Leung said.

Myha’la confirmed the anecdote, joking that the production “blew the budget” removing it digitally.

The detail, subtle but politically suggestive, hints at how Eric might vote — a question the actors discussed playfully.

“Does Harper vote?” Myha’la laughed.

Leung smiled knowingly. “My story answers that question.”

The Cost of SternTao’s Lifestyle

One lighter moment in the interview involved SternTao’s extravagant hotel suite “office.”

Eric once claimed the suite cost $100,000 a month — though Leung admitted that might have been hyperbole.

“It’s probably more like $15,000 or $20,000,” he said.

Even so, the lavish setting symbolized the illusion of permanence that ultimately unraveled.

A Fitting Industry Ending?

Whether Eric is truly gone remains unclear. But the collapse of SternTao fits Industry’s core theme: power is fleeting, loyalty is fragile, and ambition always extracts a price.

For four seasons, Eric and Harper thrived in the gray zones of finance and morality. Their partnership oscillated between mentorship, rivalry, betrayal and trust.

Now, with Eric walking into an uncertain future and Harper left to pick up the pieces, the show leaves audiences with questions rather than closure.

And perhaps that’s the point.

As Myha’la put it bluntly: “This is Industry and HBO. It’s got to end this way.”