The Gilded Age
GenreHistorical drama
Created byJulian Fellowes
Written by
  • Julian Fellowes
  • Sonja Warfield
Directed by
Starring
Composers
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes14
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Holly Rymon
  • Claire M. Shanley
Running time46–80 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkHBO
ReleaseJanuary 24, 2022 (2022-01-24) –
present (present)
Title card

The Gilded Age is an American historical drama television series created and written by Julian Fellowes for HBO that is set in the United States during the titular era, the boom years of the 1880s in New York City. Originally announced in 2018 for NBC, it was later announced in May 2019 that the show was moved to HBO.[1] The series premiered on January 24, 2022.[2] In February 2022, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on October 29, 2023.[3] The series has received mostly positive reviews, with particular praise for the costumes, cast and performances of lead actors Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski.

The series follows a young woman entering 1882 New York City's rigid social scene who is drawn into the daily conflicts surrounding the new money Russell family and the old money van Rhijn-Brook family. The two are neighbors across 61st Street near Fifth Avenue on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The series also shows conflicts faced by the upper and upper middle classes, the African-American upper class, and the domestic workers who tend to all of their needs.

Cast and characters

Main

  • Carrie Coon as Bertha Russell, determined to use her money and position to break into a polite society that resists change and newcomers at every turn
  • Morgan Spector as George Russell, Bertha's husband, and a classic robber baron representing "new money"
  • Louisa Jacobson as Marian Brook, a penniless young gentlewoman whose circumstances force her to live with her estranged aunts
  • Denée Benton as Peggy Scott, a young ambitious African-American writer who works as Agnes' secretary
  • Taissa Farmiga as Gladys Russell, innocent and naïve, yet ready to be treated as an adult
  • Harry Richardson as Larry Russell, a recent Harvard University graduate eager to make his way in the world
  • Blake Ritson as Oscar van Rhijn, Agnes' intelligent and charismatic son who is looking for a rich heiress to guarantee him a proper standard of living and act as a shield for his homosexuality.
  • Thomas Cocquerel as Tom Raikes (season 1), a sensible young lawyer, smitten when he meets Marian, his late client's orphaned daughter
  • Simon Jones as Mr. Alfred Bannister, the Van Rhijns' self-aggrandizing English butler who keeps the rest of the staff in check
  • Jack Gilpin as Mr. Church, the Russell family's butler, a supporter of Mrs. Russell, excelling at his job
  • Cynthia Nixon as Ada Brook, Agnes' spinster sister who is reliant upon her charity
  • Christine Baranski as Agnes van Rhijn (née Brook), a proud and stubborn old money socialite, matriarch of the Brook house
  • Kelli O'Hara as Aurora Fane (season 2; recurring season 1), Agnes' niece by marriage who helps Mrs. Russell break into society[4]
  • Donna Murphy as Caroline Schermerhorn Astor (season 2; recurring season 1), a prominent American socialite and leader of the elite group of New York society known as "The Four Hundred"[4]
  • Debra Monk as Mrs. Armstrong (season 2; recurring season 1), Mrs. Van Rhijn's lady's maid[4]
  • Kristine Nielsen as Mrs. Bauer (season 2; recurring season 1), a German immigrant from Hanover who cooks for Mrs. Van Rhijn and takes young Bridget under her wing[4]
  • Taylor Richardson as Bridget (season 2; recurring season 1), the Van Rhijn housemaid, troubled by an abusive past[5]
  • Ben Ahlers as John "Jack" Trotter (season 2; recurring season 1), footman of the Van Rhijn household[5]
  • Kelley Curran as Mrs. Enid Winterton (née Turner), Bertha's ambitious lady's maid, who does not intend to be a servant forever. She is fired at the end of season 1, but re-emerges in season 2 as the much younger wife of a rich widower.[5]
  • Douglas Sills as Monsieur Baudin (season 2; recurring season 1), the chef of the Russell household who initially presents himself as French before it is revealed that he is Josh Borden from Wichita, Kansas.[5]
  • Celia Keenan-Bolger as Mrs. Bruce (season 2; recurring season 1), the Russell's new housekeeper[4]
  • Michael Cerveris as Mr. Watson (season 2; recurring season 1), George Russell's valet[4]
  • Erin Wilhelmi as Adelheid Weber, also a German immigrant from Berlin (season 2; recurring season 1), Gladys Russell's lady's maid
  • Patrick Page as Richard Clay (season 2; recurring season 1), George Russell's loyal secretary[5]
  • Sullivan Jones as T. Thomas Fortune (season 2; recurring season 1), publisher of the weekly New York Globe[6]

Recurring

Guest

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
19January 24, 2022 (2022-01-24)March 21, 2022 (2022-03-21)
28[8]October 29, 2023 (2023-10-29)December 17, 2023 (2023-12-17)

Season 1 (2022)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
11"Never the New"Michael EnglerJulian FellowesJanuary 24, 2022 (2022-01-24)0.463[9]
In 1882 New York City, industrialist George Russell moves into an elaborate Stanford White-designed mansion with his wife, Bertha, and their young-adult children, Larry and Gladys. Across the street, sisters Agnes van Rhijn and Ada Brook await the arrival of their niece Marian, who is leaving Doylestown, Pennsylvania following her bankrupted father's death. Peggy Scott, a graduate of the Institute for Colored Youth, offers assistance when Marian's purse and train ticket are stolen. Marian's aunts allow Peggy to stay over during inclement weather. Agnes offers Peggy employment as her secretary on condition she informs her parents of the arrangement; Peggy agrees and later meets with her mother, Dorothy, who wants Peggy to reconcile with her estranged father. Agnes' son, Oscar, and George's son, Larry, meet at a party hosted by socialite Mamie Fish. Both meet Marian upon returning to New York. Bertha attempts to break into high society by hosting a lavish party, which Marian secretly attends. No one notable shows up, however, and Bertha vows revenge.
22"Money Isn't Everything"Michael EnglerJulian FellowesJanuary 31, 2022 (2022-01-31)0.598[10]
Marian's Doylestown lawyer, Tom Raikes, moves to New York City for a new job. He is romantically interested in Marian. Peggy, an aspiring writer, sends query letters to potential publishers, but has not yet received any replies. Marian arranges for Peggy to privately consult with Tom regarding a legal matter. Meanwhile, Bertha attempts to be included in Mrs. Morris and Mrs. Fane's upcoming charity bazaar by offering her ballroom as a venue. Instead, the event is held in a hotel at great expense to snub Bertha. Enraged, she and George attend the bazaar and George proceeds to buy everything, effectively shutting down the event. George makes a plan with Alderman Patrick Morris, in which Morris and other aldermen will buy George's company stock on margin, then pass a law that will allow George to build a new train station in the city, resulting in everyone making huge profits.
33"Face the Music"Salli Richardson WhitfieldJulian FellowesFebruary 7, 2022 (2022-02-07)0.542[11]
George learns the law will not pass and that the aldermen are manipulating the stock to their advantage. The legislators sell short, promising to deliver shares at a lower price expecting them to go down. In retaliation, George buys back as much company stock as possible, driving the aldermen into poverty by forcing them to buy at the now higher price. Peggy declines the Christian Advocate's offer to publish her story due to their racist demands. Oscar plans to court Gladys Russell, much to his lover John Adams's chagrin. Ada is approached by Cornelius Eckhard, who once proposed to her, and who Ada's father turned away. Agnes tells Eckhard that she knows he only wanted to marry Ada as a "meal ticket." Upon learning Ada has no money of her own, he stops pursuing her. Tom proposes marriage to Marian. She withholds giving a definitive answer, knowing Agnes would oppose the match. The aldermen beg George to stop inflating his company's stock price, but he is merciless. Facing complete ruin, Alderman Morris kills himself.
44"A Long Ladder"Salli Richardson WhitfieldJulian FellowesFebruary 14, 2022 (2022-02-14)0.604[12]
George offers to help the Fanes recover any money lost in the stocks debacle on the condition that Aurora helps introduce Bertha into the old money circles. New York Globe editor T. Thomas Fortune hires Peggy to write an article about political affiliations. Bannister sees the inside of the Russell house when he retrieves Ada's lost dog. Sylvia Chamberlain, a widow, tainted by rumors that she was her late husband's mistress, attempts to befriend Marian. George rebuffs Turner, Berthe's maid, when she attempts to seduce him. Bridget tells Mrs. Bauer that she was sexually abused as a child which her mother did not stop. Peggy argues with her father while visiting her parents Brooklyn. Marian arrives unannounced with used shoes, intending it as charity and which offends the Scotts. While attending a concert for the Red Cross with Bertha and the Fanes, Marian runs into Tom. She insists he must win over her aunts before she will accept his marriage proposal.
55"Charity Has Two Functions"Salli Richardson WhitfieldJulian FellowesFebruary 21, 2022 (2022-02-21)0.631[13]
George persuades Bertha to invite Gladys's suitor, Archie Baldwin, to dinner. Peggy has not forgiven Marian's assumptions that her family was poor. Mrs. Armstrong visits her invalid mother in a small tenement apartment. Bertha wants Ward McAllister's assistance in climbing the social ladder. Aurora, Bertha, Marian, and Tom travel to Dansville to hear Clara Barton speak at a Red Cross branch opening. Peggy travels with them to write an article and also watch over Marian at Agnes's request. Miss Barton notes how wealthy people use charity to enhance their social standing. Tom kisses Marian, and Peggy purposefully interrupts them. Privately, Peggy tells Marian that she once fell in love but her father disapproved. Marian apologizes to Peggy for assuming her family needed charity. Oscar recruits Turner as a spy in his quest to marry Gladys. George gives Archie an ultimatum: accept a lucrative job that George has arranged with J. & W. Seligman & Co. and stop pursuing Gladys, or refuse and never work in finance again. Archie, shaken, abruptly leaves. Richard Clay informs George that a company train derailed outside Millbourne, Pennsylvania and casualties are still uncertain. George and Bertha prepare to address the crisis.
66"Heads Have Rolled for Less"Salli Richardson WhitfieldJulian FellowesFebruary 28, 2022 (2022-02-28)0.682[14]
With five people confirmed dead, George sets out to discover the train derailment's cause, eventually learning that someone inside his company passed off substandard axles as new ones. Bertha is voted onto the Red Cross board, enraging Anne Morris. Peggy discovers her interview with Clara Barton increased the Globe's subscriptions. Gladys and Carrie Astor bond at a party hosted by Mamie Fish, with Carrie making suggestions for Gladys' debutante ball. Marian juggles keeping secret Larry's prospects of becoming an architect and eliciting a Red Cross donation from Mrs. Chamberlain, who confirms the rumors regarding her and her husband. Bertha hires van Rhijn butler Bannister to serve an English-style luncheon for Ward McAllister, greatly offending Church, the Russell family butler. Though Bannister lies to get out of his work duties, Agnes discovers the truth after an unknown person sends a note exposing him. She interrupts the luncheon but leaves when confronted by the other guests. Armstrong witnesses Oscar meeting with Turner outside the Russell house and reports back to Agnes. Bertha learns a railroad employee is claiming George instructed him to use the substandard axles.
77"Irresistible Change"Michael EnglerJulian FellowesMarch 7, 2022 (2022-03-07)0.750[15]
George unveils plans for a new electric-powered train station. George refuses Larry's request to study architecture but later reconsiders. Bertha sets a date for Gladys's debutante ball. George may face manslaughter charges for the crash. Agnes sends Marian to inform Bertha that Turner may be having a sexual affair with a man, but withholds Oscar's name. Bertha catches Turner flirting with Larry and dismisses her. Marian fails to persuade Agnes that Tom would be suitable husband. The city readies for Thomas Edison's electric power distribution ceremony, during which he will activate his Pearl Street generating station. Marian stays home when Bertha instead fills out her electric event party with Tom and Cissie Bingham (rumored illegitimate daughter of Henry Flagler). Peggy attends the event with Fortune. Edison turns on his electric lights to everyone's amazement.
88"Tucked Up in Newport"Michael EnglerJulian FellowesMarch 14, 2022 (2022-03-14)0.701[16]
George prepares for trial while Bertha plans Gladys's debutante ball. Oscar travels to Newport with the Russell family to court Gladys, but John Adams thwarts him. Aurora distrusts Tom, but Marian accepts his marriage proposal and plans to elope. Watson, George's valet, has been watching Mrs. Flora McNeil's home. When she asks him why, he introduces himself as Collyer, causing her to quickly leave. Miss Armstrong intercepts Tom's letter to Peggy, forcing Peggy to reveal to the van Rhijn-Brook family that she bore a stillborn son and her father forcibly annulled her marriage. Agnes will not fire Armstrong, so Peggy resigns. Bridget finds Jack at his mother's grave. He reveals all his family members are dead or estranged. Through Marian, George Russell discovers his stenographer, Miss Ainsley, and George Dixon framed him for negligence and the charges are dismissed. McCallister takes Bertha to see Mrs. Astor's grand Newport home while she is out. When Mrs. Astor returns early, Bertha makes a hasty exit out the back.
99"Let the Tournament Begin"Michael EnglerJulian FellowesMarch 21, 2022 (2022-03-21)0.813[17]
Bertha is turned away when she calls on Mrs. Astor. Insulted, Berthe rescinds Carrie Astor's invitation to Gladys's debutante ball unless Mrs. Astor attends. Carrie is upset over being disinvited. Marian prepares to elope with Tom, assisted by Peggy and Sylvia. Monsieur Baudin confesses that he is a French-trained chef from Wichita, Kansas named Josh Borden. Despite George's protests, Bertha fires him. Tom jilts Marion to instead marry into money. Peggy learns her father lied and that her infant son did not die and was adopted. She and her mother leave for Philadelphia to search for him. George and Bertha employ every tactic to entice the old-money crowd to attend their ball. Mrs. Astor makes amends by agreeing to attend Bertha's ball and persuade friends to also attend, including the van Rhijn-Brooks. The ball is nearly derailed when Borden's replacement gets drunk, but Borden returns to help. The ball is a success and George rehires Borden. Ada comforts broken-hearted Marian, assuring her better days are ahead.

Season 2 (2023)

No.
overall		No. in
season		Title [18]Directed byWritten by [19]Original air date [8]U.S. viewers
(millions) [20]
101"You Don't Even Like Opera"Michael EnglerJulian FellowesOctober 29, 2023 (2023-10-29)0.452
In 1883, juxtaposed Easter Sunday services are held; one with the Scott family at a Black congregation in Philadelphia, and the other for affluent residents (including the Astors, the Russells, and the van Rhijns) on Upper East Side Manhattan. Reverend Luke Forte is the new pastor. Agnes’ late husband's nephew, Dashiell Montgomery, a widower, is moving to New York with his young daughter, Francis. Marian learns that Tom Raikes is marrying. Snubbed by the established Opera community headed by Mrs. Astor, Bertha supports the new Metropolitan Opera House over the senior Academy of Music. She wants the nouveau riche to buy opera boxes, and later attract the old-money crowd. George and other robber barons face labor issues. Oscar arrives home bloodied and disheveled after engaging a man at a bar for sex. Oscar, wanting to propagate the van Rhijn family line, proposes to Gladys, promising her independence (while secretly continuing his homosexuality). Bertha invites key opera patrons to a dinner party, then shocks everyone by having famous singer, Christina Nilsson perform, which prominently displays Bertha's growing influence. Peggy meets the Philadelphia family that adopted her son.
112"Some Sort of Trick"Deborah KampmeierJulian FellowesNovember 5, 2023 (2023-11-05)0.355
Gladys refuses to spend the summer at the Russell's new Hampton mansion until Oscar's marriage proposal is settled. George, knowing Oscar only wants Gladys' fortune, urges her to marry for love rather than to escape her domineering mother. Agnes disapproves after learning Marian teaches watercolor painting to young girls; Marian refuses to quit. Peggy, to distance herself from family, returns as Agnes' secretary. Agnes warns Armstrong to treat Peggy respectfully. In Newport, wealthy widow Susan Blane hires Larry to renovate her home. Their relationship soon becomes romantic, to Bertha's disapproval. Aurora Fane attempts to match Marian with Edward Morgan, her husband's business colleague, though Edward is a drunken, dandified bore. When Chicago iron and steel workers strike for better pay and working conditions, George intends to bribe the union representative to keep workers in line. Mr. McAllister introduces Berthe to the wealthy Mr. Winterton and his much younger new wife, Enid, who is Turner, Bertha's former lady's maid. Ada appears smitten with the unmarried Reverend Forte, who she and Agnes have invited for tea.
123"Head to Head"Michael EnglerJulian Fellowes & Sonja WarfieldNovember 12, 2023 (2023-11-12)0.513
The Opera War between Bertha and Mrs. Astor intensifies. Bertha eagerly awaits the Duke of Buckingham's impending visit. Cousin Dashiell romantically woos Marian. Bertha maneuvers to force New York's elite to choose between supporting the Music Academy or The Met. Mrs. Astor recruits Agnes to help generate support for the Music Academy. George summons Mr. Henderson, the Pittsburgh Union President, to New York intending to bribe him into busting the union. Henderson refuses and leaves. Bertha confronts George after learning of his one-time encounter with Mrs. Winterton (Turner). Berthe believes him that Winterton's seduction failed but she is furious he withheld this. Peggy receives a writing assignment to cover Booker T. Washington overseeing the opening of a colored people's dormitory in Tuskegee, Alabama. Peggy's parents worry she is naive about the racism there. Playwright Oscar Wilde, in New York for one of his plays, shows interest in John Adams, Oscar van Rhijn's former lover. Watson meets with Mr. McNeil, his daughter Flora's wealthy husband, who offers him a large sum to permanently move away; Watson insists on Flora telling him. Ada discreetly spends time with Reverend Forte.
134"His Grace the Duke"Deborah KampmeierJulian FellowesNovember 19, 2023 (2023-11-19)0.482
Bertha invites Aurora Fane and several society ladies to tour the new Metropolitan Opera House, hoping they, and others, will purchase boxes. Unfortunately, construction has been halted due to finance issues, though funding soon becomes available from an unknown source. Bertha also contends with son Larry and Mrs. Blane's affair, which is becoming more public. She invites Mrs. Blane to her home to insist she end her and Larry's relationship, citing their age difference. Mrs. Blane agrees to end it. Meanwhile, Ada and Reverend Forte grow closer. Oscar now sets his matrimonial sights on the wealthy Maude Beaton. At a dinner party for the Duke of Buckingham. Bertha swaps dining table name cards, placing herself next to the Duke. He accepts her invitation to stay at their Hampton house, infuriating Mrs. Winterton who had invited him first.
145"Close Enough to Touch"Michael EnglerJulian Fellowes & Sonja WarfieldNovember 26, 2023 (2023-11-26)0.510
Bertha hopes to match Gladys with the Duke of Buckingham. At the Russells' lavish dinner party, two devious servants nearly sabotage the event. Watson and Church's quick actions avert a disaster. The dinner's success vexes Mrs. Winterton, who orchestrated the scheme to foul the first course and dump soup on the Duke. Ada accepts Rev. Forte's marriage proposal. Marian and Oscar are happy for Ada, but Agnes opposes it and refuses to attend the hasty wedding. When Agnes later admits she fears being left alone, Forte assures her that he and Ada will never leave New York. Agnes arrives at the church just as the ceremony begins. Elsewhere, Peggy and her editor, Thomas Fortune, arrive in Tuskegee. They experience racially-based intimidation when two white men barge into a restaurant to intimidate and threaten the Black diners. Later, Peggy and Thomas kiss. George sends Larry to a trustees' meeting regarding the Brooklyn Bridge's unveiling. Larry discovers that the designer of the bridge is not the architect Washington Roebling, but rather, his wife, Emily.
156"Warning Shots"TBAJulian FellowesDecember 3, 2023 (2023-12-03)TBD
167"Wonders Never Cease"TBAJulian Fellowes & Sonja WarfieldDecember 10, 2023 (2023-12-10)TBD
178"In Terms of Winning and Losing"TBAJulian FellowesDecember 17, 2023 (2023-12-17)TBD

Production

Development

In September 2012, The Daily Telegraph reported Julian Fellowes as saying that he was working on a spin-off prequel of Downton Abbey. Initially conceived as a book, it was then planned for pick-up by ITV. At the time, Fellowes planned to focus the show around Lord Grantham and Cora's romance and eventual marriage as the Earl and Countess of Grantham.[21]

Production and writing for The Gilded Age was updated in January 2016. Asked whether he'd written the script yet, Fellowes said, 'No I haven't, no. I'm doing that this year', before adding: 'And then hopefully shooting at the end of the year.'"[22]

On June 4, 2016, Fellowes was asked by the Los Angeles Times, "Where does The Gilded Age stand?" Fellowes replied, "It stands really with me up to my neck in research, and I'm clearing the decks, so that when I start Gilded Age, I'm only doing Gilded Age. These people were extraordinary. You can see why they frightened the old guard, because they saw no boundaries. They wanted to build a palace, they built a palace. They wanted to buy a yacht, they bought a yacht. And the old guard in New York weren't like that at all, and suddenly this whirlwind of couture descended on their heads. They redesigned being rich. They created a rich culture that we still have—people who are rich are rich in a way that was established in America in the 1880s, '90s, 1900s. It was different from Europe. Something like Newport would never have happened in any other country, where you have huge palaces, and then about 20 yards away, another huge palace, and 20 yards beyond that another huge palace. In England right up to the 1930s, when people made good money, they would buy an estate of 5,000 acres and they'd have to look after Nanny. The Americans of the 1880s and '90s didn't want too much of that."[23]

The final confirmation the show would be produced was announced by NBC in January 2018.[24] NBC originally announced that the show would consist of ten episodes and premiere in 2019.[24][25] About the show, Fellowes stated: "To write The Gilded Age is the fulfillment of a personal dream, I have been fascinated by this period of American history for many years and now NBC has given me the chance to bring it to a modern audience. I could not be more excited and thrilled. The truth is, America is a wonderful country with a rich and varied history, and nothing could give me more pleasure than be the person to bring that compelling history to the screen."[26]

In May 2019, the series moved from NBC to HBO, with a straight to series order.[27] The series premiered on January 24, 2022, and consists of nine episodes.[2]

On February 14, 2022, HBO renewed the series for a second season.[3]

Casting

In September 2019, the production announced an initial cast consisting of Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Amanda Peet, and Morgan Spector.[28]

In November 2019, it was announced that Denée Benton, Louisa Jacobson, Taissa Farmiga, Blake Ritson, and Simon Jones would be joining the show.[29] In January 2020, Harry Richardson, Thomas Cocquerel, and Jack Gilpin were cast as series regulars, with Jeanne Tripplehorn cast in a recurring role.[30][31]

In April, Carrie Coon was cast as Bertha Russell to replace Peet because of delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[32] This caused the costuming team to change their approach, using the way Coon presents herself as inspiration for more metallic-colored dresses intended to evoke the burgeoning machine age.[33]

In January 2021, Nathan Lane joined the cast in a recurring role.[34]

In April 2022, it was announced several members of the recurring cast had been upgraded to series regular status for the second season while Cocquerel will exit the series.[35]

Filming

Following the move to HBO, the series was expected to begin filming in March 2020,[36][37] before the COVID-19 pandemic delayed production.

Filming of the series began in Newport, Rhode Island in February 2021, at the mansions Chateau-sur-Mer, The Elms, and The Breakers.[38] A casting call for Rhode Islanders to work as extras on the series was made in December 2020 prior to the production setting up in the city.[39]

In April 2021, filming continued at the Lyndhurst mansion in Tarrytown, New York and the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, New York. In May 2021, filming continued in Troy, New York in its Central Troy Historic District, where multiple city blocks were transformed to resemble a Victorian era street.[40]

During filming, a horse died on set and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals asked for an investigation.[41] HBO subsequently issued a statement confirming the death in late June, saying, "a horse collapsed and died, likely of natural causes, according to a veterinarian’s preliminary findings."[42]

Filming for season two began in August, 2022 at various locations around White Plains, New York, including Manhattanville College's Reid Hall,[43] which was used for various locations, including offices, a home parlor and an art gallery/museum. Reid Hall was designed by Stanford White and built in 1892 for the family of newspaper publisher and diplomat, Whitelaw Reid. Reid Castle was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

Other New York locations included Albany, Cohoes, Troy and on Long Island, and the series also filmed in Philadelphia. Scenes set at Susan Blade's home were filmed at Kingscote in Newport.[44][45]

Controversy

On May 21, 2021, the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM) filed a charge for unfair labor practices against HBO and its Gilded Age production. The union claimed musicians were fired after asking they be represented by AFM.[46] Two days later HBO agreed to cover the members "on an AFM basis".[47]

Real-life events

Although The Gilded Age is a work of fiction, Julian Fellowes worked to accurately represent certain realities of the time period.[48]

Caroline Schermerhorn Astor, also known as "The" Mrs. Astor, ruled New York society in the late nineteenth century. Descending from Dutch settlers, the "knickerbocker" married relatively new money William Backhouse Astor Jr. At the time the series takes place, Astor (Donna Murphy) and her husband are largely estranged. Dismayed by the chaos caused by the end of the Civil War and the rise of new money, and armed with her own distinguished lineage and her husband's fortune, she became the gatekeeper to high society.[49] She and her associate Ward McAllister (Nathan Lane) decreed that members of respectable society must be separated by at least three generations from the origin of the family fortune, as she herself was. McAllister, Mrs. Astor's right-hand man, spent years across the Atlantic absorbing culture, details of European courts, and society news. Although some recognized his devotion to preserving elegance and tradition, others saw him as an unapologetic snob.

Two characters, Bertha and George Russell (Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector), appear to be at least partly based on the formidable Alva and William K. Vanderbilt. Alva Erskine Vanderbilt (later Alva Belmont) came from a wealthy Mobile, Alabama family that lost its money after the Civil War. Determined to regain her social status, she married a scion of the immensely wealthy Vanderbilt family in 1875. But the Vanderbilts were considered too "new money" by Caroline Astor and were largely ignored. Determined to ascend to the upper echelons of society, Alva Vanderbilt set out to impress Caroline Astor. Among her strategies, she hired society architect Richard Morris Hunt to build a luxurious mansion on Fifth Avenue, then hosted an enormous, extravagant ball for 1,000 as a ‘house-warming’. All details of the festivities were leaked in advance to the press, and young society waited breathlessly for the upcoming ball — including Caroline Astor’s daughter, Carrie. Caroline Astor was forced to call on Alva Vanderbilt to ensure her daughter received an invitation. The ball a success, the family was officially welcomed into New York high society.

Other historical figures who appear in the series include Clara Barton (Linda Emond), founder of the American Red Cross, and T. Thomas Fortune (Sullivan Jones), a man born into slavery who would become one of the leading Black journalists of his day. In his editorials, he wrote passionately about civil rights and denounced racial segregation and discrimination. He also helped found a predecessor to the NAACP, the Afro-American League.[50]

Release

The series premiered on January 24, 2022, on HBO and HBO Max. In Australia, Paramount+ acquired the series as a "Paramount+ Exclusive", premiering on January 26, 2022. This also marks the first time a recent HBO series has skipped Foxtel in Australia, premiering on a non-Foxtel service as Foxtel has an output deal for HBO shows.[51]

Home media

The first season was released on DVD, on July 26, 2022.[52]

Reception

Critical response

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a 79% approval rating based on 76 reviews, with an average rating of 6.8/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Julian Fellowes' brand of upstairs, downstairs intrigue makes a seamless transatlantic transition in The Gilded Age, with an outstanding cast making the travails of the rich a compelling watch."[53] At Metacritic, the season has a score of 68 out of 100, based on 38 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[54]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds a 94% approval rating based on 31 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "More topical than before while also owning its frivolous appeal with unapologetic splendor, Julian Fellowes' operatic soap enters its own halcyon age."[18] On Metacritic, the season has a score of 73 out of 100, based on 21 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[55]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2022
 Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards Best Cable Network Series, Drama The Gilded Age Nominated [56]
Best Writing in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Drama Julian Fellowes (for "Face the Music") Nominated
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Period or Fantasy Program (One Hour or More) Bob Shaw, Larry Brown, Laura Ballinger Gardner,
and Regina Graves (for "Never the New")		 Won [57]
Set Decorators Society of America Awards Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a One Hour Period Series Regina Graves and Bob Shaw Nominated [58]
2023
 Satellite Awards Best Actress in a Drama / Genre Series Carrie Coon Nominated [59]
Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries, or Motion Picture Made for Television Cynthia Nixon Nominated
Art Directors Guild Awards Excellence in Production Design for a One-Hour Period Single-Camera Series Bob Shaw (for "Never the New") Nominated [60]
Costume Designers Guild Awards Excellence in Period Television Kasia Walicka-Maimone (for "Let the Tournament Begin") Nominated [61]

References

  1. ↑ Keene, Allison (January 31, 2018). "'Downton Abbey' Creator Julian Fellowes' New Drama 'The Gilded Age' Heads to NBC". Collider. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  2. 1 2 White, Peter (November 18, 2021). "'The Gilded Age': HBO Unveils First-Look & Sets Premiere For Julian Fellowes Period Drama". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 21, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  3. 1 2 Petski, Denise (February 14, 2022). "'The Gilded Age' Renewed For Season 2 By HBO". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
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