Succession star Brian Cox has said that the choice between tackling climate change and the economy is a "no brainer".
"You know, without climate, we don't have any economy," he told RTÉ's Prime Time.
Mr Cox, who plays media magnate Logan Roy on the critically acclaimed show, said that we need to take care of our planet – and act responsibly.
"We need people not just protesting, but actually coming up with solutions. And, particularly the young people – we need to encourage the young to say, look, you have to help us," Mr Cox said.
Mr Cox told Prime Time that, thus far, human beings have shown themselves to be "very disappointing".
"We keep shooting ourselves in the foot," he said.
Cox, whose character is known for his foul-mouthed humour, was also critical of the efforts of world leaders to tackle climate change.
"We've got a liar Boris Johnson, we had a liar in Trump. And Joe Biden, I mean, I feel so sorry for this 78-year old man. He's an older man and he knows the cost, what the cost is – and nobody's facing up to that cost."
Mr Cox said that the current moment has "never been more important".
He said: "We're running out of time. We've got to do something."
He drew parallels between climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic, arguing that the virus was "some kind of mechanism" to tell human beings that we have gone "too far".
"You're going far too far in relationship to this planet. So therefore we need to provide a stop for you, a pause for you. And that's what Covid has done."
"Covid has provided us an extraordinary pause where the buttons being pressed in order to [allow us] to reassess ourselves. And that's what we should start doing."
He acknowledged that the Covid-19 pandemic has been "horrific" in ways, given the immense loss of life.
But he said there was "a connection between the two things – I don't think it's arbitrary in any way."
Mr Cox said he hopes that speaking out will help create bridges between his generation and young people.
He acknowledged, however, that he is an offender when it comes to his own carbon footprint.
"It's my carbon footprint... the footprint of flying because, when you're working, like you have to be somewhere tomorrow, so you've got to get that. So we've, we've got to find a way to fuel our planes."
For its second season, Succession won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series in 2020. The plot sees Roy's children vying to succeed him as CEO of Waystar Royco, his media empire.
The show returned earlier this month for a third season, which is currently airing in Ireland on Sky Atlantic and NOW.
