The world of HBO’s ‘Industry’ is known for its cutthroat deals and brutal betrayals, but the latest episode delivered a gut punch that no one saw coming. In Season 4 Episode 6, titled “Dear Henry,” viewers watched Eric Tao ( Ken Leung ) make a devastating exit from the show, dissolving his partnership with Harper Stern ( Myha’la ) under the most heartbreaking circumstances. The episode, which aired on February 15, 2026, revealed that the woman Eric had been secretly seeing was not who he thought she was, leading to his complete downfall.
In the hours following the broadcast, Ken Leung and Myha’la sat down with multiple outlets to explain the thinking behind Eric’s shocking decision. According to Leung, Eric’s choice to walk away from SternTao and leave Harper in the dark was not an act of betrayal, but a final, twisted act of protection.
The Gut Punch: What Happened in Episode 6?
After a rare moment of victory where Eric and Harper successfully exposed the fraud at tech company Tender, their world came crashing down. Eric received a blackmail text containing video of him with Dolly (Skye Degruttola), a young woman he had been seeing. Attached was a photo of her passport, revealing she was only 14 years old. The setup was orchestrated by Whitney Halberstam (Max Minghella) as a way to destroy Eric and protect Tender.
Instead of fighting or explaining himself, Eric made a quiet, devastating choice. He legally separated himself from SternTao, signing his stake over to Harper on extremely generous terms without telling her why. He cited only “reputational risks” and walked away, leaving Harper confused, angry, and feeling abandoned by the one person she trusted.
“He’s Protecting Harper”: Ken Leung Explains Eric’s Motive
Many fans initially saw Eric’s silence as cold or cruel, but Ken Leung offers a different take. In interviews with The Hollywood Reporter and IndieWire, Leung explains that Eric’s primary goal was to shield Harper from the ugly truth and from any legal or professional blowback.
“He’s protecting Harper,” Leung told TV Insider. “He subconsciously sees Harper as more of his daughter than his biological daughters.”
Leung elaborated that by removing himself completely and refusing to give details, Eric ensures that Harper and SternTao have total deniability. If Eric were to explain the situation, Harper would become complicit in the knowledge. By taking the secret to his grave, he keeps her hands clean. Myha’la agrees with this reading, noting that while Harper feels insanely betrayed, Eric’s exit was the only way to save the fund and her reputation.
“It’s the worst kind of betrayal,” Myha’la said. “She feels alone in the world. She’s so pissed. But of course, he couldn’t tell her the real reason.”
The Dolly Relationship: Why Eric Misjudged Everything
One of the most tragic layers of the story is how Eric viewed his relationship with Dolly. Ken Leung revealed that he made a specific acting choice to make the fall harder: he played the relationship as if Eric genuinely believed Dolly was “the one.”
“On the page, she looks like just another fling,” Leung told IndieWire. “And I didn’t want to approach it that way. I thought, ‘What if Dolly, in Eric’s mind—the mess, the jungle that that is—what if she’s the one?’”
Leung explained that Eric, in his mission to rediscover his humanity and build a real connection, projected all his hopes onto this woman. He saw her as a chance at something lasting. When the truth about her age and Whitney’s setup is revealed, it destroys him on a level far deeper than a business scandal ever could.
The “8 Mile” Moment: Eric’s Final Stand
Before his exit, Eric delivered one last masterful performance. During a joint CNN interview with Whitney, Eric did the opposite of what Whitney expected. Instead of being shamed, he openly owned the fact that Whitney would try to destroy his character, turning the focus back on Tender’s need for an audit.
The show’s writers referred to this as Eric’s “8 Mile” scene, comparing it to Eminem’s character winning a rap battle by admitting his own flaws before his opponent can use them. For Ken Leung, this was a fun moment to revisit the old, ruthless Eric before the character’s emotional collapse.
Filming the Final Scene: A Real-Life Goodbye
For Ken Leung and Myha’la, the scene where Eric dissolves the partnership carried extra weight. It was the last scene they filmed together.
“As far as I know, it’s our last scene,” Leung confirmed to multiple outlets. “So there was that in it. Even though we’re friends and remain friends, to have what we created the past six years come to an endpoint, it’s very poignant.”
Myha’la shared that after their scene finished, she stayed to watch Leung work. She admitted it was hard to watch her friend and scene partner go through such an emotional exit. Leung’s final shot of the season is a long, solitary walk down the middle of a road as Judy Collins’ “Both Sides Now” plays, a scene that Leung describes as a blend of Eric and himself walking away together.
What About the Trump Figurine?
In a lighter moment during their press tour, Ken Leung and Myha’la revealed a funny behind-the-scenes secret. Leung shared that during the first season, he had a small Donald Trump figurine on top of his Bloomberg monitors as a set decoration, meant to hint at Eric’s political leanings.
However, Myha’la reminded him that the production team spent “so much money” erasing that figurine from every frame in post-production. “They blew the budget just to get that s**t out,” she laughed. Leung confirmed the story, noting that while the figurine is gone, it indirectly confirms how the characters would vote.
Also Read:
Is This Really the End for Eric Tao?
All signs point to yes. Ken Leung has stated that to his knowledge, there are no plans for him to return. The show has not yet been renewed for Season 5, but even if it is, the creators have suggested that once a character leaves the toxic world of high finance, they don’t usually come back.
For now, viewers are left with that haunting image of Eric walking away, a tragic figure who gained self-knowledge too late. Episodes of ‘Industry’ Season 4 air Sundays on HBO and are available on Max in the USA. In the UK, the series airs on BBC One and iPlayer, while viewers in Canada can watch on Crave. Australian audiences can catch the show on Binge and Foxtel, and Indian viewers can stream it on JioCinema.
Also Read: Kang Doo-joon’s Bold Public Confession Shocks Everyone in Positively Yours Episode 9
For more entertainment news and updates on your favorite HBO series, keep reading VvipTimes. We bring you the latest details straight from the cast and creators, so you never miss a moment of the drama.
