4 Years Later, The Gilded Age's Time Jump Will Finish An Historic Season 1 Story

Published Oct 11, 2026, 11:30 AM EDT

John Orquiola is a TV Editor, Senior Writer, and Interviewer with a special focus on Star Trek. John has over 5,000 published articles at SR, and he has interviewed the biggest names in Star Trek on the red carpet and VIP events, among other beloved shows, movies, and franchises.

The Gilded Age season 4 will pay off a four-year-old tease about a major event in American history. Created by Julian Fellowes, HBO's hit prestige drama returns on November 1st. One of the reconciliations at the end of The Gilded Age season 3 was between Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) and Larry Russell (Harry Richardson), but Marian's previous romance ties into season 4's historical event.

The Gilded Age began in 1882 with Marian's arrival in New York City, and the series has depicted some key events of the late 19th century. Thomas Edison illuminating the New York Times building with electricity was a literal highlight of The Gilded Age season 1. The Brooklyn Bridge's opening in May 1883 was seen in The Gilded Age season 2, including the truth about Emily Warren Roebling as one of the landmark's engineers.

The opening of the Metropolitan Opera was the driving event of The Gilded Age season 2, while the practice of British noblemen marrying American heiresses for financial gain was central to season 3. Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon) masterminded the marriage of her daughter Gladys (Taissa Farmiga) to Hector, Duke of Buckingham (Ben Lamb), but at the cost of losing her husband, George Russell (Morgan Spector).

The Gilded Age Season 4 Will Show The Statue Of Liberty Teased In Season 1

The Gilded Age season 4 is confirmed to include the dedication and opening of the Statue of Liberty on October 28, 1886. This is a long-awaited follow-up to one of The Gilded Age season 1's earliest tie-ins to American history, when the hand of the Statue of Liberty was on display in Madison Square and visited by Marian and Peggy Scott (Denee Benton).

In The Gilded Age episode 3, "Face The Music," Marian went to Madison Square to meet her then-fiancé, Thomas Raikes (Thomas Cocquerel). The Statue of Liberty's arm and torch were displayed in Madison Square beginning in 1876 until 1882. The statue's residency in New York was part of a campaign to raise funds for the complete statue.

The Statue of Liberty was designed by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi as a gift from France to the United States. However, America was asked to pay for the statue's pedestal. Bartholdi toured the Statue's arm and torch to raise money, first arriving at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. Responding to the New York newspapers' lack of enthusiasm for the Statue, Bartholdi announced that he might let Philadelphia claim it instead of New York Harbor, which led to New York hosting the Statue's torch in Madison Square.

The Gilded Age season 4 will depict the Statue of Liberty's dedication and opening in New York Harbor, which was an opportunity for Julian Fellowes' series to add more historical figures, including President Grover Cleveland (Jim Gaffigan). If Marian attends the Statue's opening, it will bring her visit to the hand and torch in The Gilded Age season 1 full circle.

The Gilded Age Season 4 Has The Show’s Biggest Time Jump Yet

Image via HBO

Each season of The Gilded Age picks up roughly one year after the previous season, but The Gilded Age season 4 will see the biggest time jump yet. Season 4 will bring the series to 1886, roughly two years after The Gilded Age season 3's ending. This means the show will skip Bertha Russell's pregnancy, and she and her Duke will already be young parents.

Sadly, Bertha and George Russell haven't reconciled when The Gilded Age season 4 begins. The strongest marriage in the series was left in smithereens when George walked out on his ambitious and manipulative wife. Meanwhile, Bertha used her power to help divorced women become more accepted in high society. No doubt, Bertha did this to be self-serving in case she and George get divorced.

The Gilded Age season 4 will explore Peggy Scott and Dr. William Kirkland's (Jordan Donica) marriage. Further, Agnes Van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) will attempt to regain her status in society after ceding control of her household to her sister, Ada (Cynthia Nixon). Meanwhile, self-made man Jack Trotters (Beh Ahlers) will continue his rise, while Oscar Van Rhijn (Blake Ritson) and Enid Turner (Kelly Curran) grasp for power together.

Marian Brook and Larry Russell seem destined to be together, and the couple may grow stronger and march towards marriage in The Gilded Age season 4. If Larry proposes to Marian at the Statue of Liberty, it would be a fitting way to pay off Miss Brook's original visit to Lady Liberty's torch in season 1.

The Gilded Age season 1 premieres Sunday, November 1 on HBO