HBO Renews The Gilded Age for Season 2

HBO’s latest buzzworthy drama series is definitely coming back for more. On Monday, the premium cable network confirmed that The Gilded Age has been renewed for a second season. The period drama, which is created by Downton Abbey alum Julian Fellowes, had HBO’s best Monday night premiere since Chernobyl when it premiered late last month. The series is currently in the middle of airing its first season, and is expected to air its finale on March 21st.

“Julian Fellowes and the entire Gilded Age family have thoroughly captivated us with their tale of late 19th century New York City extravagance,” Francesca Orsi, Executive Vice President, HBO Programming, said in a statement. “Along with our partners at Universal Television, we couldn’t be prouder to embark on a season two journey with this extraordinarily talented team.”

“The first season of The Gilded Age is the beginning of an epic story that introduced a fascinating world full of intriguing characters,” Erin Underhill, President, Universal Television echoed. “The scope of Julian’s vision is ambitious, and we’re thrilled to continue to explore the depths of this fascinating era with HBO.”

The Gilded Age begins in 1882 with young Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) moving from rural Pennsylvania to New York City after the death of her father to live with her thoroughly old money aunts Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) and Ada Brook (Cynthia Nixon). Accompanied by Peggy Scott (Denée Benton), an aspiring writer seeking a fresh start, Marian inadvertently becomes enmeshed in a social war between one of her aunts, a scion of the old money set, and her stupendously rich neighbors, a ruthless railroad tycoon and his ambitious wife, George (Morgan Spector) and Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon). Exposed to a world on the brink of the modern age, will Marian follow the established rules of society, or forge her own path?

“At one of the awards shows, I was sitting across the aisle from the Downton Abbey cast,” Baranski explained in a recent interview with Variety. “I was up for a supporting role for The Good Wife, and in my category was the great Dame Maggie Smith, so I didn’t have to worry that I would have to get up and speak because I knew she would (and she did). But afterwards there was a party, and I remember going up to Julian and having a conversation. I’m not sure I was cheeky enough to say, “I’d really like to be in something if you wrote it,” but I did express my admiration for Downton and spoke something of my husband’s family background being the Drexel family, and what a fascinating period of history it was. So I just remember having a lovely chat with him and I lived in hope that if ever there was something, anything like Downton Abbey, that I could be part of it. I’d never done anything historical on film. And so here we are! It’s a dream come true for me.”

The series also stars Taissa Farmiga, Blake Ritson, Simon Jones, Harry Richardson, Thomas Cocquerel, and Jack Gilpin.

What do you think of The Gilded Age already being renewed for a second season by HBO? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!