History, Power, and Prestige: What to Expect from “The Gilded Age,” Season 3
/Break out the roast duck, raw oysters, and champagne – HBO's lavish period drama "The Gilded Age" is coming back this summer for its star-filled third season.
Who Is Joining the Cast of "The Gilded Age" for Its Third Season?
The new season will feature an expanded cast and introduce more historical figures of the era. Bill Camp ("Presumed Innocent") will portray the legendary financier J.P. Morgan who will undoubtedly cross paths with the ruthless railroad tycoon George Russell (Morgan Spector). LisaGay Hamilton ("The Practice") will play the famed Black writer, abolitionist, and suffragette Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, and newcomer Hannah Shealy will appear as the young socialite Charlotte Augusta Astor.
Tony nominee Bobby Steggert ("Ragtime") will portray the artist John Singer Sargent, who would go on to become one of the most popular portrait painters of the Gilded Age. Coincidentally, to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the artist's death, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has a special exhibit of the artist's work on display through August 3. In a 2023 webinar, the costume designers of "The Gilded Age" stated that the visual approach for the show was heavily inspired by paintings of the era, with lead costume designer Kasia Walicka Maimone saying, "We looked at endless amounts of paintings, and that created very quickly this key to the door of how to approach this period, because the painters naturally heightened the beauty, heightened the contrast, heightened the colors, and we needed that language of heightened reality for our story."
The third season of "The Gilded Age" will also introduce a new prominent family, the Kirklands, who live in Newport, Rhode Island. Two-time Tony winner Phylicia Rashad ("The Cosby Show") will play the matriarch Elizabeth, and Tony winner Brian Stokes Mitchell ("Kiss Me, Kate") will appear as her husband Frederick, a church pastor. Theater star Jordan Donica ("Camelot") will portray their son, a handsome doctor named William, who fancies Peggy Scott (Denée Benton). Tony winner Leslie Uggams ("Roots") will recur as Mrs. Ernestine Brown, a friend of the Kirklands. During the Gilded Age, wealthy families spared no expense building enormous mansions in Newport, and many still stand today. Through June 27, the Preservation Society of Newport County is launching a guided experience that will take visitors through four of Newport's most iconic mansions that also served as filming locations for the series.
In other casting news, Emmy winner Merritt Wever ("Nurse Jackie") will appear in the new season as Monica O'Brien, the estranged sister of Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon). Dylan Baker ("Homeland") is set to play a doctor who caters to members of high society. Broadway actress Kate Baldwin ("Hello, Dolly!") will portray Nancy Adams Bell, the older sister of John Adams (Claybourne Elder). Michael Cumpsty ("Severance") will play the British Lord Mildmay, and John Ellison Conlee ("Boardwalk Empire") is set to appear as Weston, a successful and well-educated businessman associated with Mildmay. Tony winner Victoria Clark ("Kimberly Akimbo") will appear as Joan Carlton, a kindhearted New Yorker who comes from old money.
Other newcomers for season three include Jessica Frances Dukes ("Ozark"), who will play Athena Trumbo, a cousin of Dorothy Scott (Audra McDonald) and member of Newport's elite Black community; Andrea Martin ("Evil") as Madame Dashkova, a medium who claims to be able to converse with the dead; Hattie Morahan ("Outnumbered") as Lady Sarah Vere, the sister of the Duke of Buckingham (Ben Lamb) who is engaged to Gladys Russell (Taissa Farmiga); and Broadway's Paul Alexander Nolan ("Escape to Margaritaville") as Alfred Merrick, a distinguished New York businessman.
What Happened on "The Gilded Age" Last Season?
In season two, Bertha Russell fought to establish an enviable music hall, the Metropolitan Opera House, for the nouveau riche who were unable to get boxes at the distinguished Academy of Music. To win the Opera War, Bertha promised her daughter's hand in marriage to the Duke of Buckingham in exchange for his attendance on opening night. Across the street, Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) secretly took a job teaching at a girls school and turned down a promising marriage proposal to the dismay of her aunt Agnes Van Rhijn (Christine Baranski). In the season finale, Marian and Larry Russell (Harry Richardson) finally shared a kiss, setting the stage for additional tension between the feuding neighbors in the new season. Oscar (Blake Ritson) and Ada (Cynthia Nixon) each endured tragedies that offset one another but flipped the power dynamics of the household heading into the new season.
What's Going to Happen in Season Three?
The third season logline indicates that big changes are ahead, stating: "Following the Opera War, the old guard is weakened and the Russells stand poised to take their place at the head of society. Bertha sets her sights on a prize that would elevate the family to unimaginable heights while George risks everything on a gambit that could revolutionize the railroad industry — if it doesn't ruin him first. Across the street, the Brook household is thrown into chaos as Agnes refuses to accept Ada's new position as lady of the house. Peggy meets a handsome doctor from Newport whose family is less than enthusiastic about her career. As all of New York hastens toward the future, their ambition may come at the cost of what they truly hold dear."
Additionally, an HBO executive told Deadline that the new season will explore divorce, though there are no details regarding which couple is splitting up. Be sure to tune in to HBO on June 22 to find out, and to marvel at the extravagant hats, luxurious digs, and sumptuous cuisine of the era.
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