Warning: SPOILERS For The Gilded Age Season 3, Episode 7 - “Ex-Communicated"Larry Russell (Harry Richardson) has greatly improved as a character inThe Gilded Ageseason 3, thanks to a subtle but crucial change. The only son and heir of tycoon George Russell (Morgan Spector) and his ambitious, social-climbing spouse Bertha (Carrie Coon), Larry found a new direction and greater success inThe Gilded Ageseason 3.
Audiences didn’t have a strong handle on Larry Russell’s character inThe Gilded Ageseason 1. Larry was handsome and well-heeled, but tended to fade into the background. Larry’s younger sister, Gladys (Taissa Farmiga), was subject to their mother’s vaulting ambition for her marriage and future, and Larry tended to be a loving and reliable shoulder for Gladys to lean on.
The Gilded Ageseason 2leaned into Larry’s ambition to become an architect, to separate himself from his robber-baron father. Larry courted scandal when he entered a relationship with an older widow, Susan Blane (Laura Benanti), in Newport. Yet it wasn’t untilThe Gilded Ageseason 3 that the Russell scion truly popped as a compelling character.
The Gilded Age Season 3 Made 1 Important Change To Larry Russell For The Better
Larry Russell substantially improved inThe Gilded Ageseason 3by making him more like his father, George. Larry’s ambitions as an architect were noticeably backburnered inThe Gilded Ageseason 3. Instead, Larry entered a business partnership with Jack Trotter (Ben Ahlers), and it was ultimately a fruitful one that made Russell and the footman-turned-inventor independently wealthy men.
By bringing his Russell-born business sense to balance Jack’s innovation, Larry showed he is his father’s son after all. Larry then literally saved the Russell family fortune when he exceeded expectations after George dispatched his son to Morenci, Arizona.Larry ingeniously realized the mines George already owned contained enough copper to make them even richer,a vision George’s henchmen failed to see.
WhenGeorge regards Larry proudly, telling him,“I see myself in you,“it’s earned validation. Larry may or may not have his father’s ruthless killer instinct in the boardroom, but the Russell scion has plenty of smarts and the ability to recognize ways to make money. Yet Larry also remains a good-hearted person, emerging as a standout inThe Gilded Ageseason 3.
Larry Russell Marrying Marian Brook Is More Like George & Bertha Than His Mother Thinks
Larry Russell fell in love with Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson), and his choice of the well-meaning Marian, who lacks money and social standing of her own, shows he doesn’t share his mother Bertha’s values. While Bertha wasn’t thrilled about Larry choosing Marian, George welcomed Miss Brook. George innately understood something about Larry and Marian that echoes his own marriage to Bertha.
George Russell’s wealth is self-made, and he married Bertha, who was not from a well-born family. Yet together, George and Bertha became one of New York City’s premier power couples, despite their marriage troubles inThe Gilded Ageseason 3. Larry and Marian have the same potential for status and happiness, with the advantage that Larry is already wealthy.
Larry and Marian’s misunderstanding, which caused her to end their engagement, looks like it will be smoothed over by the end ofThe Gilded Ageseason 3. Whatever happens, Larry Russell has been the beneficiary of arguablyThe Gilded Ageseason 3’s best character revamp, turning him into a force of his own, and making Larry a character genuinely worth rooting for.
