Who Tried to Kill Mr. Russell? ‘The Gilded Age’ Fans Think They Know

Things are becoming even more dramatic ahead of The Gilded Age’s season 3 finale which, as many have already predicted, will set up an even bigger cliffhanger for the recently announced fourth season.

The historical drama’s fans had quite many reasons to speculate about, whether it’s Gladys’ infamous wedding, John Adams’ brutal killing and now a potential threat that Mr. Russell has just faced in episode 7.

While more about the shocking occurrence is yet to be told in the third season’s finale, The Gilded Age’s fans have already agreed on who might be behind the possibly fatal shooting and who is (probably) out of the suspect list.

Did Mr. Russell Die in ‘The Gilded Age’ Episode 7?

The show’s fans will have to wait for one more week to learn the answer for this question because no one knows for sure whether that bullet reached Mr. Russell or not.

The episode ends on Morgan Spector’s character leaving his office late at night when he suddenly encounters a man claiming he’s got a parcel for him.

It then doesn’t take long for the mysterious man to take out a gun and shoot George’s assistants before eventually pointing the gun at him too.

The outcome of the shooting is what will decide George and his entire family’s fate since the former spent most of the third season investing almost all of his money into railroad business so that he could expand his influence from New York and all the way to California.

‘The Gilded Age’ Fans Might Have Just Figured George’s Hitman

While it’s not clear who exactly was pointing the gun at George at the moment, who was the one to actually want him dead remains an even bigger mystery.

What the show’s fans now know for sure is that it will likely be someone from George’s surroundings in high society, and there’s a couple of characters who might have had their own reasons to eliminate George.

“My money’s on Merrick. It seems pretty clear that Larry’s trip to Arizona will be a success, so the only thing George will need to see his plan through is control of Merrick’s railroad, which Merrick apparently has no interest in selling”, Redditor Senators_1992 suggested in a thread, referring to Alfred Merrick, a new member of the New York high society that tries to establish close relationships with Bertha.

“Merrick likes Bertha. If George is out of the way, then Merrick could theoretically marry Bertha to gain control of George's assets”, BornFree2018 agreed.

Clay was the one to cause even more division.

“I think it is Clay. I think he tries to harm through business, fails, then resorts to violence”, Dapper_Ad_819 wrote, talking about Richard Clay, George’s long-standing secretary who he fired not a long time before.

“I do not think it is Clay. Clay to be is the type who will get his revenge by working for George's rival. He will hurt him in business”, Maureen1053 retorted.

Whoever was to pull the trigger and stand behind the whole idea, the answer for the burning question will likely be revealed in The Gilded Age’s season 3 finale which will air on HBO Max on August 10.