HBO has struck gold with The Gilded Age. The period drama from Downton Abbey’s Julian Fellowes enjoyed its strongest season yet, with season 3 racking up 20 percent more viewers than season 2 and social engagement rising nearly 60 percent week over week, according to the network. Now, HBO is striking while the iron is hot and has ordered another season of the series. (Isn’t that what railroad tycoon George Russell would do?)
First debuting in 2022, The Gilded Age follows the lives of key upper-class families in New York high society—and the working members of their households—at the turn of the 19th century. As the new-money folk wriggle their way into power and the old money fight to maintain dominance, drama ensues. And viewers can thank stars like Carrie Coon, Christine Baranski, Audra McDonald, Cynthia Nixon, and more for bringing it to life.
Here’s everything we know about The Gilded Age season 4 while we wait for its return.
Was The Gilded Age renewed for season 4?
Yes, thankfully. HBO announced the news on July 28, weeks before the season 3 finale.
In a statement about the renewal, HBO exec Francesca Orsi praised Fellowes and the cast and crew for creating “a ‘can’t-miss it’ entertainment experience from week to week, and we’re delighted to continue exploring these characters’ grand ambitions for what we promise will be a thrilling fourth season.”
What will The Gilded Age season 4 be about?
Deadline revealed the official logline: “In season 4 of The Gilded Age, Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon) changed Society at a cost. Now, her family must reckon with the consequences as Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) seizes an opportunity to regain her position. Meanwhile, Marian (Louisa Jacobson) forges a new path for herself, and Peggy (Denée Benton) works to be accepted by her future in-laws. In this new era, you must be careful what you wish for.”
The season 3 finale might also offer a few hints of what fans can expect. (Watch out for spoilers ahead.) With the way things ended, there are a few questions we have in mind: Are Bertha and George headed for divorce? Will Larry and Marian finally marry? Will Peggy and Dr. William Kirkland tie the knot too, or will his mother get in the way again? And of course, what will happen when Gladys welcomes her baby with the duke?
Taissa Farmiga, who plays Gladys, told ELLE of her season 4 hopes: “I don’t know if they would pick up soon after [the pregnancy reveal]. Are they gonna pick up with Gladys having children? That will be a total mindfuck to go from being someone who wants freedom for her mother to all of a sudden she’s the mother. That would be an intense change. Otherwise, I’d love Gladys to start wearing suits, but I don’t think that’s in her future.” She joked, “I don’t think it’s possible, but it’d be amazing. Imagine she walks into some gay club and is surrounded by a bunch of incredible lesbians. That’d be such a fun storyline to see. My God, I wish!”
As for the Russells’ marriage problems, Coon told The Hollywood Reporter that Bertha’s “wheels are already turning about how she’s going to fix it. You know she’s not going to give up on it. She’s indefatigable, of course. So I think she’s looking out that window and she’ll have a moment of grief, and then she’s going to get to work on some kind of plan.”
Creator Julian Fellowes has said he didn’t have specific plans past season 3, but told TV Insider, “But each time you have to reinvent the show in order to give it a new dynamic to fit its new proportions.”
When will The Gilded Age season 4 premiere?
The Gilded Age season 4 will premiere on HBO Max on November 1.
Who will be in the cast?
Deadline revealed in February 2026 that Carrie Coon, Christine Baranski, Louisa Jacobson, and Denée Benton will all be reprising their roles for The Gilded Age season 4. Jordan Donica and Ashlie Atkinson are also set to return, this time as series regulars.
Six new actors will also be joining the period drama’s recurring cast: Dennis Haysbert (The Unit), Neal Huff (Mare of Easttown), Maggie Kuntz (John Proctor Is the Villain), Bonnie Milligan (Search Party), James Scully (You), and Taylor Trensch (Bat Boy: The Musical).
In March 2026, Deadline reported that Morgan Spector, Cynthia Nixon, Christine Baranski, Harry Richardson, Blake Ritson, Taissa Farmiga, and Audra McDonald will also reprise their roles for season 4. Kelley Curran also received a promotion to a series regular.
Jim Gaffigan (Chappaquiddick), Dallas Roberts (Walk the Line), Elizabeth Marvel (Presumed Innocent), and Andrew Burnap (Snow White) have also joined season 4 as guest stars.
While waiting for the rest of the cast to be confirmed, here are the remaining cast members from the official season 3 lineup: Ben Ahlers, Dylan Baker, Kate Baldwin, Victoria Clark, John Ellison Conlee, Michael Cumpsty, Kelley Curran, Jordan Donica, Jessica Frances Dukes, Claybourne Elder, Amy Forsyth, Jack Gilpin, LisaGay Hamilton, Ward Horton, Simon Jones, Sullivan Jones, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Ben Lamb, Nathan Lane, Andrea Martin, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Debra Monk, Hattie Morahan, Donna Murphy, Kristine Nielsen, Paul Alexander Nolan, Kelli O’Hara, Patrick Page, Rachel Pickup, Taylor Richardson, Douglas Sills, Bobby Steggert, Erin Wilhelmi, John Douglas Thompson, Leslie Uggams, Merritt Wever, Bill Camp, and Phylicia Rashad.
Can I see a sneak peek?
Yes. The official teaser trailer for season 4 arrived on August 25 and teases the potential clash between the old-money and new-money families.
“We are truly being tested. We must fight with every tool we have. No one has all of the power all of the time,” Bertha Russell says in the first seconds of the clip.
Agnes van Rhijn is also desperate to keep up appearances. “The entire reputation of this family depends on the success of the President’s dinner,” she tells her sister, Ada. “This is no time to be pinching pennies,” she adds, to which Ada cheekily responds, “Especially when they’re not your pennies to pinch.”
Deception is also brewing in season 4, with Enid Winterton stating, “Mrs. Astor and Mrs. Russell have defined what society means for them. Does it stand to reason that we should be the ones to decide what it means for us?”
Peggy Scott will also be experiencing a major transition in season 4 through an engagement, and already appears to be clashing with her future in-laws. “Would you rather everyone know the sordid details?” Elizabeth Kirkland says, threatening Peggy with a secret reveal.
Watch the teaser below.
The official trailer arrived on October 13. The president’s dinner still holds major weight for Agnes van Rhijn. “Soon I shall entertain the president of the United States. I must be cunning, and that means rallying people I trust,” she tells Ada. When Ada refuses to pay additional fees to put on the dinner, she insults her taste—and her choice in curtains.
Agnes’s son, Oscar van Rhijn, is just as eager to keep up appearances. “Society may seem capricious, but really it’s all tremendously predictable. We are on the verge of greatness,” he tells Enid in a private moment.
Elsewhere in the trailer, several suitors approach Peggy Scott with work opportunities, but her mother, Dorothy, refuses to let go of the reins when it comes time for wedding preparations. A war also brews, with Bertha teasing a major struggle between several key players in the series. “We must right the ship before it takes us down with it. We have no choice...this is war,” she says.
Watch the trailer below.
Watch The Gilded Age on HBO Max
This post has been updated.