Everything to Know About ‘The Gilded Age’ Season 2: Who Is Returning, Potential Spinoffs and More

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

Everything to Know About 'The Gilded Age' Season 2: Who Is Returning, Potential Spinoffs and More

More fortune in store! HBO's historical drama, The Gilded Age, will be returning for a second season. The series, which was renewed in February 2022, was created by Downtown Abbey showrunner Julian Fellowes and is set against the backdrop of 1880’s America amid the “Gilded Age” — a historical period of immense economic age for the country. Season 1 of the series premiered in January 2022 and follows Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) as she relocates from rural Pennsylvania to glamorous New York City to live with her wealthy aunts (Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski) following the death of her father. “I [was] interested right away,” Jacobson told Vogue during a February 2022 interview about her audition. “The details I had about my character, Marian, at that stage were pretty limited. She’s described as an innocent country girl who moves to Manhattan after her father dies and leaves her penniless. She’s quite wide-eyed about the high society in which she finds herself, but there’s a boldness and a fire to her that’s slowly coming out, too.” As Marian adjusts to living in the Big Apple, she finds herself pulled between the two worlds of modernity and her family’s old-money traditions — something her aunts are well versed in. “One of the things about The Gilded Age that excited me most was that I would get to use [the] training I haven’t used in so long because I’ve played contemporary characters,” Baranski told Town & Country in January 2022. “Just say the words ‘Julian Fellowes [is] doing a TV show for HBO’ [and] I mean, OK, sign me up.” [sendtonews type="float" key="1Rx0ZnaFS4-2832369-14453"] In March, HBO officially announced that the second season was under production and will film in both New York and Rhode Island. “The rumors are true. #GildedAgeHBO has begun production on Season 2,” the network’s official Twitter posted alongside a photo of Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector in the Russell mansion filming a scene while crew members are gathered around them. During The Gilded Age: For Your Consideration event on May 24, Fellowes exclusively told Us Weekly that while he’s “pleased with the way season 2 is shaping up,” he can’t promise the follow-up installment to the series is guaranteed to make all fans happy. “When fans get involved with the characters, which is what you're striving for, really, they will ask you to do is to make their favorite character happy,” the England native explained. “That is the request that I get. 'Make so and so happy, make her happy, make him happy,' and of course, if you've made everyone happy, there wouldn't be much to watch. You'd just tune in to see a group of happy people having a nice time.” The novelist added, however, that viewers being so involved with the show is overall “very rewarding” and now that he’s more familiar with the actors playing the characters on the page, the show will ultimately be more satisfying for everyone involved. “Writing for performances you're already enjoying and deliberately writing for actors that you now know — I have found that very enjoyable and I was on set today and yesterday and I was really thrilled.” Keep scrolling for more details on The Gilded Age season 2: [podcast_block]

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

Everything to Know About 'The Gilded Age' Season 2: Who Is Returning, Potential Spinoffs and More

More fortune in store! HBO's historical drama, The Gilded Age, will be returning for a second season. The series, which was renewed in February 2022, was created by Downtown Abbey showrunner Julian Fellowes and is set against the backdrop of 1880’s America amid the “Gilded Age” — a historical period of immense economic age for the country. Season 1 of the series premiered in January 2022 and follows Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) as she relocates from rural Pennsylvania to glamorous New York City to live with her wealthy aunts (Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski) following the death of her father. “I [was] interested right away,” Jacobson told Vogue during a February 2022 interview about her audition. “The details I had about my character, Marian, at that stage were pretty limited. She’s described as an innocent country girl who moves to Manhattan after her father dies and leaves her penniless. She’s quite wide-eyed about the high society in which she finds herself, but there’s a boldness and a fire to her that’s slowly coming out, too.” As Marian adjusts to living in the Big Apple, she finds herself pulled between the two worlds of modernity and her family’s old-money traditions — something her aunts are well versed in. “One of the things about The Gilded Age that excited me most was that I would get to use [the] training I haven’t used in so long because I’ve played contemporary characters,” Baranski told Town & Country in January 2022. “Just say the words ‘Julian Fellowes [is] doing a TV show for HBO’ [and] I mean, OK, sign me up.” [sendtonews type="float" key="1Rx0ZnaFS4-2832369-14453"] In March, HBO officially announced that the second season was under production and will film in both New York and Rhode Island. “The rumors are true. #GildedAgeHBO has begun production on Season 2,” the network’s official Twitter posted alongside a photo of Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector in the Russell mansion filming a scene while crew members are gathered around them. During The Gilded Age: For Your Consideration event on May 24, Fellowes exclusively told Us Weekly that while he’s “pleased with the way season 2 is shaping up,” he can’t promise the follow-up installment to the series is guaranteed to make all fans happy. “When fans get involved with the characters, which is what you're striving for, really, they will ask you to do is to make their favorite character happy,” the England native explained. “That is the request that I get. 'Make so and so happy, make her happy, make him happy,' and of course, if you've made everyone happy, there wouldn't be much to watch. You'd just tune in to see a group of happy people having a nice time.” The novelist added, however, that viewers being so involved with the show is overall “very rewarding” and now that he’s more familiar with the actors playing the characters on the page, the show will ultimately be more satisfying for everyone involved. “Writing for performances you're already enjoying and deliberately writing for actors that you now know — I have found that very enjoyable and I was on set today and yesterday and I was really thrilled.” Keep scrolling for more details on The Gilded Age season 2: [podcast_block]

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

When Will It Premiere?

While the second season was officially renewed by HBO on February 14, 2022, and production has officially begun filming in New York and Rhode Island, there is no premiere date set yet.

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

Who Is Starring?

The series is greatly expanding its bandwidth for the follow-up installment. In addition to Baranski, Nixon, Coon, Spector and Jacobson, Blake Ritson, Taissa Farmiga, Harry Richardson, Denée Benton, Simon Jones, and Jack Gilpin are set to star. Kelli O’Hara and Donna Murphy have also been promoted to series regulars for season 2. 

To give the proper depth to the housemaids and butlers in The Gilded Age world, Debra Monk, Kristine Nielsen, Taylor Richardson, Ben Ahlers, Kelley Curran, Douglas Sills, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Michael Cerveris, Erin Wilhelmi, Patrick Page, and Sullivan Jones will also star in the second season, to deepen the "Upstairs and Downstairs feeling of the show," per Deadline. The only series regular not returning is Tom Raikes, who plays Marian's love interest. 

Audra McDonald, Nathan Lane, John Douglas Thompson, Ashlie Atkinson, Claybourne Elder, and Ward Horton will appear in recurring roles.

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

Who in the Cast Are Friends?

Benton, who plays Peggy on the historical drama, told Us in May 2022 that “the entire cast is incredible,” but she “and Louisa [Jacobson] are so much in love and grace and wisdom.” The Broadway performer added that “she's the best co-star and the most incredible person to go through this journey with.”

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

How Does the Cast Feel About Season 2?

Jacobson revealed to Us that she’s “so grateful” for season 2 of the HBO series and the opportunity to approach her character with more knowledge than the first time around.

“As an actor, you always just appreciate being able to work. It's been really overwhelming,” the actress gushed about her time on the show. “The first season was like being shot out of a cannon because I'm surrounded by all these Tony Award-winning actors and it was my first time. I am learning on the go and it's such a public arena to learn in so that was difficult but rewarding in the end. I am approaching season 2 with so much more knowledge and confidence. I think that's going to be so exciting.”

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO (2)

Any Spoilers?

While Fellowes warned Us that he “can’t really share anything about season 2 or I’ll be shot,” Spector, who portrays George Russell on the series, gushed about what lies ahead for his character.

“I was thrilled because not having any power as an actor — well not no power as an actor — [you’re] sort of hoping that you'll get certain sort of storylines,” he explained. “This was right exactly. I was like ‘Oh, yes, we get to do this one.’ I was excited.”

As far as what fans can expect from Russell’s marriage to Bertha (Coon) in the show, the actor teased the couple would face the typical ups and downs of any relationship. “It’s like a real marriage. I think there are challenging moments but you know I think how you get through those moments is what really defines a couple, right?” he said.

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

Are There Spinoffs Planned?

While no spinoff is currently in the works, Benton told Us that she would love to see “a spinoff of [Peggy and Marian’s love], which she considers to be the “true love story of the show.”