The Gilded Age Just Killed Off This Beloved Character in a Shocking Way
Season 3 of The Gilded Age has been dramatic, complete with a chaotic wedding, the continued manipulations of New York City social high society, and clever business transactions. But the biggest downfall was the death of John Adams that the sixth episode ended with.
In this movie, Claybourne Elder has a favorite character that was killed by being run over by a carriage running down the street. The breathtaking scene takes place after he helps his fellow friend and ex-lover Oscar van Rhijn (Blake Ritson) in his downfall of finance and the sudden encounter with the lady (Maud Beaton) who deducted all his money in a long time.
The death of John is a tragic blow to lovers of the historical drama about the elite society of Manhattan set in the 1800s, done by Julian Fellowes. It also resolves the short LGBTQ arc in the series of Oscar and John.
John was first introduced on The Gilded Age as a potential suitor for Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson), Oscar's cousin.
Initially introduced on The Gilded Age as a possible lover to the cousin of Oscar, Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson), John was characterized by Jennifer Holliday as a likely reputation medium until we come upon the idea of the person in charge.
But it soon came to light that John was a grandson of the President, John Adams and Oscar were in a clandestine affair.
Their relationship became complicated because the two men were straight. During the first two seasons, Oscar tried to court and finally proposes to Gladys Russell (Taissa Farmiga). John knew that Oscar was doing something against it, but he sympathized with what Oscar was doing.
The two later separated but John still made appearances on the show although in very rare occasions. In season 2, a writer, Oscar Wilde (Jordan Waller) sees him in New York when He arrives in the city to act his play Vera or The Nihilists. It was following the concert though, when John finally told Oscar (van Rhijn) that he was, in fact, dating another man and that he was fine with it since he was a gay man.
John rescues Oscar in season three whereby he makes his financially strained friend an investment proposal to help revive his career and business status. Her giving him a cheque was a means by which Oscar got to recuperate his investments and start climbing up the ladder once again.
The good fortune of Oscar was almost ruined when Maud came back and was found out to be a dancer in a gentlemen club. Upon meeting her again, however, he found out that she had lost all the money she stole him in season 2.
Oscar in a conversion later purchased her a train ticket to Sandusky, Ohio and gave her the sum of 100 dollars on condition that she never came back to Manhattan.
In the last episode (episode 6) when they talked to each other, John told Oscar: I like this new version of Oscar van.
Then he also comforts his friend over the theft of his money saying that Maud was also deceived. John added when he and Oscar walked down the street that he will invest more on Oscar in the career and described Oscar as one who is defying the odds.
and here we separate, John threw in, and meet again when he comes up with a new investor to show Oscar, as his new lucky customer. Oscar answered with the words, "Thou art my saviour." I very much appreciate what you are saying.
Then when John went outside into the street, a carriage ran over him killing him before the eyes of Oscar who was shocked and disoriented by the gruesome event.
During the interview with the Out magazine, Elder explained the consequences of portraying John in the show.
Such has been my lesson of the Gilded Age of life, remarked Mr. Elder. Getting to portray a queer character in this time period is thrilling as a queer actor and a necessary thing to do. The late nineteenth-century was not truly the era when LGBT people could live their life in the open but still, we know that they existed, fell in love, and made their own spaces.
John is complex to me, he said, because he lives in a world that often does not make accommodations to suit him, and he has this drive that he feels he must do the right thing, it is cool that his character is really connected to actual history in the real world. It is a reminder that LGBT has always been a thing, it has just been that history has not always been keen on bringing them up. It is a great privilege to actually make it so real."
Through a special interview with PEOPLE regarding season 3, Fellowes repeats the same sentiments Elder had about the life of John in an epoch and a location in which he could not be out in the open. Well, I guess my major thought in mind with John Adams is that what a lot of people there are going to have to tongue-tie in a society that is quite not tolerant of any deviance, in other words a lot of pretense and a lot of people are leading artificial lives, more or less, adequately, as you know.
Overall, Oscar is hiding his bifurcated life without upsetting the horses etc and as Fellowes notes, "when real pain creeps into that it becomes all skew-whiff as you cannot just ignore that nothing has happened and you are fine and it is all ok". You're forced to find a way of getting through.
The Gilded Age season 3 is on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and Max.