&34;What's at play there is somebody who's really in an existential crisis,&34; Spector says of George in the season finale. The Gilded Age stars Carrie Coon an

"What's at play there is somebody who's really in an existential crisis," Spector says of George in the season finale.

*The Gilded Age *stars Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector weigh in on fate of the Russells' marriage

"What's at play there is somebody who's really in an existential crisis," Spector says of George in the season finale.

By Maureen Lee Lenker

Maureen Lee Lenker

Maureen Lee Lenker is a senior writer at ** with over seven years of experience in the entertainment industry. An award-winning journalist, she's written for Turner Classic Movies, *Ms. Magazine*, *The Hollywood Reporter*, and more. She's worked at EW for six years covering film, TV, theater, music, and books. The author of EW's quarterly romance review column, "Hot Stuff," Maureen holds Master's degrees from both the University of Southern California and the University of Oxford. Her debut novel, *It Happened One Fight*, is now available. Follow her for all things related to classic Hollywood, musicals, the romance genre, and Bruce Springsteen.

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Published on August 11, 2025 09:00AM EDT

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Morgan Spector, Carrie Coon. Credit:

Karolina Wojtasik/HBO

- In the season finale of *The Gilded Age, *George Russell survives being shot — but it leaves him questioning his marriage and everything he's held dear.

- Bertha proceeds with her Newport Ball, welcoming George to her side, but he is preparing to put distance between them.

- Even with Gladys happily married and Marian and Larry reconciling, it's too little too late for George.

**This article contains spoilers about *The Gilded Age *season 3 finale,* *"I've Made Up My Mind."**

It's been a season of calamity and trial for the Russells on *The Gilded Age.*

As Bertha (Carrie Coon) forced Gladys (Taissa Farmiga) into wedding the Duke of Buckingham, George (Morgan Spector) was forced to sign off on something he never wanted — pushing his daughter into marrying a man she didn't love.

Meanwhile, his once-stable company is in danger, as he struggles to win his interests in a mine out West and is confronted with the potential of financial collapse. All of this is worsened when George lashes out at his longtime right-hand man, Richard Clay (Patrick Page), by firing him. The strain of his business woes then amplifies the cracks in his marriage.

Morgan Spector and Carrie Coon as George and Bertha Russell in 'The Gilded Age'.

Karolina Wojtasik/HBO

"George is usually very calculating," Spector tells *. *"Calm, very cool-headed. Somebody who's able to assess a situation, take in all the information, know whether he has enough leverage to win or whether he needs to retreat and fight another day.

"In this season, we see him plowing ahead despite his better judgment, and that costs him his ally in Clay and it threatens his marriage," he continues. "I don't know that George is headed in a productive direction. There's something about where he's gotten in terms of his own business success that has driven him a little crazy."

Because of the chaos in his business affairs, George also takes issues at home to heart far more than he might have previously. He even goes so far as to declare that Bertha's ambition is out of control. Pot meet kettle?

Merritt Wever, Morgan Spector, Carrie Coon, and Harry Richardson in 'The Gilded Age'.

Karolina Wojtasik/HBO

"Of course it's hypocritical," admits Spector. "But there's a clash of implicit values. For George, it's obvious that you would never allow your ambitions or your business pursuits to intrude on the domestic sphere. For Bertha, the arena of her ambition is the domestic sphere."

"George fails to see that," he adds. "This space that, for him, is a sacred space is the arena of her ambition. She has to bring her ruthlessness to that space sometimes. It's a real clash of values. They discover, unwittingly, a space where they haven't communicated what they really believe, and so they wound each other horribly."

George explains to Bertha that he's ruthless in business but not with the people he loves, to which Bertha replies, "I'm ruthless *for *the people I love."

Carrie Coon as Bertha Russell in 'The Gilded Age'.

Karolina Wojtasik/HBO

Coon reiterates this, noting that Bertha's ambitions are ultimately at the service of George and her entire family. "Everything Bertha has done for Gladys is actually out of love," she tells EW. "Everything she's doing to set Gladys up in English society, which would reflect well on them in New York, is something to help George and his business interests.

"She thinks that's very loving," Coon adds. "What she loses sight of is not taking George into account and she doesn't realize just how far apart they are. It's not purely ambition, and she feels profoundly misunderstood."

In addition to these emotional scars, George sustains a more physical wound when he's shot point-blank at the end of the penultimate episode (seemingly by a man hired by Clay). In the season finale, which aired Sunday night, George fights for his life as Dr. Kirkland (Jordan Donica) performs emergency surgery to remove the bullet.

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George survives, which only reaffirms Bertha's desire to save her marriage, but it sends George even deeper into a spiral. Indeed, by the end of the episode, all seems to be well. Gladys is happy in her marriage and expecting a baby, and Bertha has now welcomed Marian (Louisa Jacobson) as a potential wife for Larry (Harry Richardson).

Still, it isn't enough for George, who only appears at Bertha's Newport Ball to protect his business interests, a fact that he makes clear to her. He tells Bertha that he's not sure what he wants anymore and rides back to town with Larry without so much as saying goodbye. Why isn't Gladys' happiness and Bertha's change of heart about Marian enough to placate him?

"It's not necessarily what she did, it's the way she did it," says Spector. "George has had this near-death experience, and one of the things that everybody struggles with is this question of, 'Does the way I actually live my life accord with my values?' George has had this experience, just prior to his near-death experience, of failing to live up to his own values and moral code.

Morgan Spector as George Russell in 'The Gilded Age'.

Karolina Wojtasik/HBO

"When he has this existential moment, it really shakes him." Spector continues. "It shakes him about his relationship with himself. That's what's at play there — somebody who's really in an existential crisis. It's not just his marriage."

But if you think Bertha's going down without a fight, well, have you watched the show? "Bertha is pretty relentless," says Coon. "I don't imagine her giving up on it if that's what she really wants. Having had that experience where she almost lost him has solidified her belief in their inevitable future together."

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Adds Spector: "That's something that's really sad about that last scene — it feels like she's actually resolved in herself that she wants to be in the marriage. And then George —"

"He walks away," finishes Coon. "It's really heartbreaking."

But what's next? Will our favorite smug married couple find their way back to each other? *The Gilded Age *has been renewed for a fourth season, so we will eventually get some answers.

"It's going to be a process, and I would love to see that process play out," says Spector. "There's a question mark that hangs over them for sure. They could find each other again or they could not, but I would love to see a season where we chart that difficult journey back to each other."**

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