(HBO)

The fight between old money and new money will continue. The Gilded Age has been renewed for a second season on HBO. The fourth episode of the first season airs tonight.

A period drama series, The Gilded Age TV show was created by Julian Fellowes and stars Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Denée Benton, Louisa Jacobson, Taissa Farmiga, Blake Ritson, Simon Jones, Harry Richardson, Thomas Cocquerel, and Jack Gilpin, with Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski. Other performers include Ben Ahlers, Michael Cerveris, Kelley Curran, Claybourne Elder, Linda Emond, Katie Finneran, Amy Forsyth, Michel Gill, Ward Horton, Bill Irwin, Sullivan Jones, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Nathan Lane, Audra McDonald, Debra Monk, Donna Murphy, Kristine Nielsen, Kelli O’Hara, Patrick Page, Taylor Richardson, Douglas Sills, John Douglas Thompson, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and Erin Wilhelmi. The American Gilded Age was a period of immense economic change, of great conflict between the old ways and brand new systems, and of huge fortunes made and lost. Against the backdrop of this transformation, this show’s story begins in 1882 with young Marian Brook (Jacobson) moving from rural Pennsylvania to New York City. After the death of her father, she goes to live with her thoroughly old money aunts, Agnes van Rhijn (Baranski) and Ada Brook (Nixon). Accompanied by Peggy Scott (Benton), an aspiring writer seeking a fresh start, Marian inadvertently becomes enmeshed in a social war between one of her old money aunts and her stupendously rich neighbors — a ruthless railroad tycoon and his ambitious wife, George (Spector) and Bertha Russell (Coon).

Airing on Monday nights, the first season of The Gilded Age averages a 0.04 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 534,000 viewers in the live+same day ratings (including DVR playback through 3:00 AM). While these numbers don’t include further delayed or streaming viewing, they are a very good indicator of how a show is performing, especially when compared to others on the same channel. There can be other economic factors involved in a show’s fate, but typically the higher-rated series are renewed and the lower-rated ones are cancelled.

Here’s the second season renewal announcement from HBO:

HBO Renews Drama Series THE GILDED AGE For A Second Season

HBO drama series THE GILDED AGE has been renewed for a second season. From creator Julian Fellowes (“Downton Abbey”), HBO’s THE GILDED AGE debuted on January 24 with episodes currently streaming on HBO Max. The nine-episode drama series stars an ensemble cast of Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Louisa Jacobson, Denée Benton, Taissa Farmiga, Blake Ritson, Simon Jones, Harry Richardson, Thomas Cocquerel, Jack Gilpin, with Cynthia Nixon and Christine Baranski. The season one finale will air March 21.

Logline: The American Gilded Age was a period of immense economic change, of great conflict between the old ways and brand new systems, and of huge fortunes made and lost. Against the backdrop of this transformation, HBO’s 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?

Additional cast (in alphabetical order): Ben Ahlers, Michael Cerveris, Kelley Curran, Claybourne Elder, Linda Emond, Katie Finneran, Amy Forsyth, Michel Gill, Ward Horton, Bill Irwin, Sullivan Jones, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Nathan Lane, Audra McDonald, Debra Monk, Donna Murphy, Kristine Nielsen, Kelli O’Hara, Patrick Page, Taylor Richardson, Douglas Sills, John Douglas Thompson, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Erin Wilhelmi

IndieWire called the series “expansive” and “stunning,” while NPR applauded the show as “brilliantly cast and beautifully shot… addicting and juicy.”

The first episode of THE GILDED AGE premiered as HBO’s best Monday night debut since “Chernobyl.”

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

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

Season 1 Credits: Creator/writer/executive producer, Julian Fellowes; executive producer, Gareth Neame; director/executive producer, Michael Engler; executive producer, David Crockett; director/executive producer Salli Richardson-Whitfield; executive producer Bob Greenblatt; Writer/Co-Executive Producer Sonja Warfield; Co-Executive Producer Erica Dunbar. THE GILDED AGE is a co-production between HBO and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

What do you think? Have you watched The Gilded Age TV series on HBO? Are you glad to know that this period drama has been renewed for a second season?