‘The Gilded Age’ Season 4 Can’t Come Soon Enough: Everything We Know so Far

Kelli Boyle August 28, 2025, 2:46 pm

Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector in 'The Gilded Age' Season 3 — HBO

The Gilded Age Season 3 was its most-watched yet, according to HBO. Thanks to the popular season, the Season 4 renewal was announced after Episode 6 (of eight) aired, guaranteeing that fans of the Julian Fellowes drama will see their favorite characters return. It was a two-year wait between Seasons 2 and 3, so we’re officially in a long stretch before the Russell family finale cliffhanger is addressed.

Here, we’re compiling all of the latest news about The Gilded Age Season 4. We’ll continue to share updates as they become available.

When does The Gilded Age Season 4 premiere?

Given the August 2025 finale date, it’s far too soon to know when The Gilded Age will return. Season 1 premiered in January 2022, with Season 2 coming out in October 2023. Season 3 came out in June 2025. Given that release history, fans can reasonably hope for something sooner, but they’d be wise to prepare for a 2027 release.

The Gilded Age Season 2 likely would have come out earlier in 2023 had it not been for the Hollywood strikes that year. In fact, its entire run on HBO has had unique filming circumstances. It filmed Season 1 under strict COVID-19 safety parameters, and then what would’ve been its promotional season for Season 2 was canceled by the Hollywood strikes in 2023. It wasn’t until midway through Season 2, when the actors strike ended, that the cast could do any interviews about the episodes. Season 3 marked the first time the cast and crew could celebrate its release with an official premiere, but it was a full two years after the debut of the second season.

Who is in The Gilded Age Season 4 cast?

A cast list is not confirmed, but given that their characters were alive as of the season finale, expect Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Taissa Farmiga, Harry Richardson, Louisa Jacobson, Denée Benton, Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Kelli O’Hara, Donna Murphy, Audra McDonald, John Douglas Thompson, Jordan Donica, Phylicia Rashad, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Blake Ritson, Ashlie Atkinson, Ben Ahlers, Kelley Curran, Jack Gilpin, Simon Jones, Debra Monk, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Taylor Richardson, and more to come back in Season 4.

'The Gilded Age' Season 4 Could Finally Bring One Rivalry to the Forefront — and Reignite Another

Claybourne Elder will most likely not be back in Season 4 following the death of his character, John Adams in the final moments of Episode 6. We’d wager that Patrick Page will be back as Clay, but that could be a very contentious character, as he’s suspected for hiring the hitman who shot George in the penultimate episode.

What happens in The Gilded Age Season 4?

The biggest burning question on every fan’s mind is if George and Bertha Russell are really done for good. George’s near-death experience made him rethink his life entirely. While it seemed at the Newport Ball that that meant he was going to reconcile his grievances with Bertha about Gladys’ (Farmiga) arranged marriage, the finale’s last seconds shocked viewers by having George leave Bertha.

They’re not divorced yet, but it’s more possible than ever. And the couple on which the characters are loosely based, William and Alva Vanderbilt, famously got divorced after marrying their daughter, Consuelo, off to a British duke. Sound familiar? It would be a crying shame for one of TV’s best and hottest power couples to fall, but the fallout would be delicious drama. Bertha, in the meantime, is trying to make life better for divorced women.

We’re still waiting to know if Peggy (Benton) said yes to William’s (Donica) wistfully romantic proposal as well. She was crying tears of joy when he got down on one knee, so we imagine she said yes, but we didn’t see her answer so their engagement remains unconfirmed for now. Larry (Richardson) and Marian (Jacobson) are also kind of back together but not yet re-engaged. Gladys and Hector are expecting their first baby, so hopefully that’s a very happy tale and nothing close to the trauma of Lady Sybil’s (Jessica Brown Findlay) first child in Fellowes’ Downton Abbey. (Could a Gilded Age and Downton Abbey crossover happen? We ponder the possibilities here.) The good news on that front: Consuelo Vanderbilt lived to 88, so if they’re going to continue molding Gladys after her, that’s a great sign.

When does The Gilded Age Season 4 take place?

The Gilded Age Seasons 1 and 2 were set in 1882. The Gilded Age Season 3 was set in March 1883 at the beginning. Without a plot description for Season 4, we can’t say when exactly Season 4 will take place. But the show has only done short time jumps so far, mainly only jumping ahead a couple of months between seasons, so we’d predict only a couple of months difference at most between Seasons 3 and 4.

Alternatively, we’d love to see the new episodes pick up immediately after that gut-wrenching final shot of the season, when Bertha wept in a windowsill while watching George ride away.