‘The Gilded Age’ Season 3 Will ‘Explore the Era of Divorce’: How Will This Impact the Russells?
The Gilded Age cast and crew has dropped some major spoilers about the show’s upcoming season 3, including the characters potentially entering their divorce era.
Francesca Orsi, EVP and Head of Drama, HBO, spoke with Deadline about what’s to come in season 3 for New York’s elite.
“I think, broadly, it’s an interesting way in which we’ve explored that era of how divorce came to the forefront in United States relationships,” she told the outlet in the interview published on Wednesday, February 12. “I think that there’s a conversation to be had about arranged marriages, and if it doesn’t necessarily work, what divorce looks like in that time, and what that bodes for society. And then whether you’re accepted in society or not, based on a divorce.”
In season 2, viewers saw a strain in the marriage of Bertha Russell and George Russell but they were kind of able to patch things up by the time it came to the big opera house feud in the season finale. It was Bertha who was able to best Mrs. Astor in the big money war and get the Duke of Buckingham on her side. Other couples don’t seem to be as solid as the Russells, and could be the ones in trouble in season 3.
Carrie Coon, who portrays Bertha, told People in August 2024 that it was “chiefly exciting because we didn’t think we were getting a season 3. The people watching the show really did save it.”
“It’s exciting because we have dispatched with all of the exposition, and now it’s all storytelling, we don’t have to introduce anyone really anymore,” she said about filming the new season. “And I feel that [writers] Julian [Fellows] and Sonja Warfield have really embraced our very specific pacing, which is quite breathless actually, a lot can happen in an episode.”
After her character won the opera war, Carrie was happy that Bertha’s storyline led her to land back on top of New York’s elite society.
“The opera war was a fierce battle, but Mrs. Astor always knew that she was going to have to yield at some point because the new money Bertha represents comes with such ungodly wealth,” she said. “It’s just that Mrs. Astor wanted to yield in her own time, and in her own way. And somebody like Bertha is going to just keep pushing until those doors are thrown wide open for her.”
“And so I think Bertha recognizes that as long as she keeps this up, she’s going to get everything she wants. And it’s true,” Carrie continued. “If you look at history, the people with the most money did get what they wanted. They still do.”
Though season 2’s ending was something to celebrate for Bertha, Carrie said the show’s shock value will not wear away in the upcoming season.
“I was really shocked by a couple of the twists we have coming. So that was thrilling,” the Fargo actress remarked. “They keep surprising me. I haven’t even seen all the scripts yet, so I am eager to be surprised.”
Louisa Jacobson, who portrays Marian Brook, teased that there are some big “twists” ahead in season 3.
“There’s a lot of plot twists,” she told People on February 1. “It’s gonna keep you on your toes.”
No official premiere date has been announced for The Gilded Age season 3, however, the show is expected to premiere at some point in 2025 on Max.
