Did the Present Simply Kill off a Important Character?

Warning: Spoilers forward for The Gilded Age season 3, episode 7.

Is George Russell useless? 

The Gilded Age season 3 delivered one other shocker — only one week after killing off beloved character John Adams (Claybourne Elder) — and now the destiny of Morgan Spector‘s character hangs within the steadiness following the penultimate episode.  

The stunning second got here on the finish of episode 7, simply when it appeared just like the Russell household might have lastly pulled themselves from the brink. Larry (Harry Richardson) had helped his father, George, save his railway enterprise after quite a lot of expensive shrewd monetary dealings. Bertha (Carrie Coon) is making ready to host a ball in Newport after seemingly patching issues up together with her daughter, Gladys (Taissa Farmiga), following her marriage to the Duke of Buckingham (Ben Lamb). 

George might saved his enterprise, however his life — and marriage — hangs within the steadiness.

All of season 3, George has been attempting to bolster his domination over the railway, from going through off with the mining unions in Arizona to usurping majority management of the Central Illinois railway from Alfred Merrick (Paul Alexander Nolan) and his household. 

Alongside the best way, George held off advances from Russell Risley Sage (Peter McRobbie) and his former worker, Richard Clay (Patrick Web page), throughout negotiations organized by JP Morgan (Invoice Camp). The Russell patriarch additionally dispatched Larry to Arizona, the place his son found that mines have been, actually, filled with copper, that means their companies have been financially secure once more. It additionally allowed him to renew funds to the Duke as a part of their payout for marrying Gladys. 

Nonetheless, all these strikes created enemies for George, who additionally discovered himself struggling to remain on the identical web page along with his spouse — particularly after fracturing their relationships with their youngsters over her insistence that they marry companions of social and monetary stature. Along with forcing Gladys to wed the Duke, Bertha additionally had various opinions on Larry’s romance and damaged engagement with Marian (Louisa Jacobson). 

By the top of episode 7, George — who might have gloated a bit an excessive amount of in entrance of Sage and Clay — was staying on the gents’s membership regardless of Bertha’s pleas that he stay at house. It was there {that a} mysterious intruder made his approach into George’s research and shot his gun at him.

The display screen instantly cuts to black because the shot was fired.

Spector says he was shocked when he first learn the script for the episode, and shares how the assault resonated with him whereas filming the collection.

When requested if he was apprehensive that he was getting kicked off The Gilded Age early, Spector, 44, tells PEOPLE, “I did.”

However the actor grew to become intrigued by the timeliness of the episode co-written by creator Julian Fellowes. “What I actually thought was that possibly Julian Fellowes is a soothsayer or like some form of seer as a result of the United Healthcare man had simply been gunned down on the street — and out of the blue it felt like The Gilded Age was essentially the most topical present on tv,” Spector stated, referring to the December 2024 killing of the insurance coverage CEO Brian Thompson — which occurred earlier than the collection wrapped manufacturing on season 3 in January 2025. 

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The actor defined how George and the Thompson have been in related circumstances, noting that “it is also that traditionally correct. I imply, these guys, you understand, there have been assassination makes an attempt, there have been bombings [as a result of what] they have been doing to their staff.”

For George, that has been evident all through the collection, with trade tycoon’s ruthless therapy of rail staff and miners, who’ve tried to protest the working situations. 

What turns into of George’s destiny within the season 3 finale stays to be seen. 

The Gilded Age season 3 airs Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and Max.