'The Gilded Age' Season 4 Confirms Time Jump
'The Gilded Age' seems to be angling towards including a 'Downton Abbey' prequel with the news of Season 4's move to the later 1880s.
The Gilded Age's damn near miraculous turnaround in Season 3 was one of the few bright spots of 20235. After two seasons of utterly ridiculous plots uncomfortably juxtaposed with a British aristocrat's attempts at touching the third rails of American politics, Julian Fellowes found his footing again by returning to his original inspiration: marrying American money to British nobility. Marrying off Gladys Russell (Taissa Farmiga) to the Duke of Buckingham finally brought the gravitas to the series it sorely needed. It also inspired the series to do the same for Peggy Scott (Denée Benton), with writer Sonja Warfield giving her a romance that crossed the unspoken color lines within the Black Bourgeoisie.
Season 3's breakout success came after the show was nearly torched by WarnerMedia's philistine CEO, a man who is now being pushed out the door with several bags of cash. While the new owners will arguably be worse, Fellowes is quite familiar with dealing with the wealthy failsons of the moneyed classes. All he has to do is give the kid a second hit season with the promise of Season 5 finally giving viewers what he always wanted: Young Cora Levinson meeting and marrying Robert Crawley, newly ascended Earl of Grantham.
However, the series has had a small problem. Like most period dramas, it advances one year per season. Season 3 concluded in 1884, and Cora's London season doesn't canonically happen until 1888. If the series was going to aim for a Downton prequel thread, things were going to have to start moving a little faster.
Despite the production keeping mum on when the new season is set, we can all thank Donna Murphy, who plays the real-life Mrs. Astor in the show, for giving fans a sneak peek behind the scenes. But it's not all fancy teacups. She also posted a reel of her first costume fitting, casually dropping that Season 4 moves the series forward two years, kicking off in 1886. It's a good bet that even if the series doesn't quite make it to Cora's debutante year on the London marriage mart this time, Robert Crawley will definitely be sowing some wild oats at house parties as he attempts to nail down an American heiress. Who else would Duchess Violet enlist to help find her son a suitable bride than the now happily married ex-pat wife of Hector Vere, 5th Duke of Buckingham?
Here's the current (very brief) Season 4 synopsis:
Bertha Russell changed Society at a cost. Now, her family must reckon with the consequences as Agnes van Rhijn seizes an opportunity to regain her position. Meanwhile, Marian forges a new path for herself, and Peggy works to be accepted by her future in-laws. In this new era, you must be careful what you wish for.
The sprawling cast of The Gilded Age keeps on growing with Season 4, though of the massive roster, only the topline cast are curreently confirmed to return: Carrie Coon (Bertha Russell), Christine Baranski (Agnes van Rhijn), Cynthia Nixon (Ada Forte), Morgan Spector (George Russell), Denée Benton (Peggy Scott), Ben Lamb (the Duke of Buckingham), Taissa Farmiga (Gladys Vere), Harry Richardson (Larry Russell), Louisa Jacobson (Marion Russell), Blake Ritson (Oscar van Rhijn), and Audra McDonald (Dorothy Scott). Donna Murphy (Mrs. Astor) has clearly confirmed her return, and the synopsis implies the returns of Brian Stokes Mitchell (Pastor Frederick Kirkland), Phylicia Rashad (Elizabeth Kirkland), and Douglas Thompson (Arthur Scott).
The downstairs situation is less certain. The two-year time jump, the Russell breakup, and the marriages being set up at the end of Season 3 suggest that we will finally lose some of the excess cast that has made the show so unwieldy. However, Season 4 moves Kelley Curran (Mrs. Enid Winterton), Ashlie Atkinson (Mamie Fish), and Jordan Donica (Dr. William Kirkland) from supporting roles to series regulars.
New guest stars for the forthcoming season so far include Elizabeth Marvel (House of Cards), James Scully (Modern Love), Neal Huff (Mare of Easttown), Andrew Burnap (Under the Banner of Heaven), Taylor Trensch (Evil), Dennis Haysbert (Lucifer), Maggie Kuntz (John Proctor is the Villain), Bonnie Milligan (And Just Like That), Dallas Roberts (Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery), and comedian Jim Gaffigan as Grover Cleveland, the 22nd (and later 24th) President of the United States.
The Gilded Age Season 4 is currently filming. It is not expected to debut until at least late 2026, but more likely to arrive in 2027.
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