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The Gilded Age star reveals feelings about expanded role in season 4 and romantic storyline
Family drama is afoot for Peggy and William.
- Olivia Garrett
Published: Friday, 4 September 2026 at 4:00 pm
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The Gilded Age's Jordan Donica won our hearts in season 3 as the wealthy intellectual Dr William Kirkland, who romanced his way into Peggy Scott's (Denée Benton) heart, culminating in a fairy-tale proposal at the end of the season.
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Now, with season 4 landing on 1 November, we can look forward to seeing a lot more of the charming doctor as Donica's role has been officially upgraded to series regular.
All the hints so far suggest his storyline this season will include some tensions between his fiancée and the rest of the prominent Kirkland family. In season 3, we already saw Mrs Kirkland's (Phylicia Rashad) distaste over Peggy’s outspokenness on matters of race and suffrage and her attitude towards Peggy's family, particularly Peggy’s father Arthur (John Douglas Thompson), who was once enslaved.
The synopsis for the upcoming episodes reads: "Peggy works to be accepted by her future in-laws. In this new era, you must be careful what you wish for."
Jordan Donica. Santiago Felipe/Getty Images
Donica himself confirmed that we would be seeing more complex sides to the doctor this season. In an exclusive chat, he said: "I think we get to see Dr Kirkland as more of a fleshed-out human being.
"It's nice to play the romantic white knight in shining armour, I've done that a lot in my career. But what's even better is when you get to show all of the sides of a human, and you get to see his growth as a human being, both in his relationships and in his professional life. I'm excited to see how people react to that."
The period drama confirmed Donica and fellow cast member Ashlie Atkinson would be upgraded to series regulars in February of this year. Reflecting on that change, he said: "Honestly the amount of work was the same! I was technically a supporting guest star in my first season but I was still in seven out of eight episodes. But I just love being on a set."
He continued: "Every day is like a tech day in theatre, you're there for 12 to 16 hours, and everything is such a collaboration between the crew and the director and the actors.
"That's what I love about working on The Gilded Age. Everyone comes to the story with a perspective and a point of view, which is great because then we can find the space between all of those points of view where the story actually lives, and you feel that magic on a set when you can all go, 'That's it.' That moment of discovery.
"So the opportunity to get to do that even more is what I love, that's everything."
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Now filming is complete for the upcoming season, Donica is achieving another dream scenario of playing the Phantom in the West End's 40th anniversary run of The Phantom of the Opera – a job he originally turned down for The Gilded Age.
"Two years ago, I actually was cast as the Phantom here, but then HBO offered me this wonderful opportunity on The Gilded Age, and I feel like I couldn't pass that up, and the producers were so understanding and so kind and so loving," he recalled.
"So I'm just thankful that the opportunity came back around. I literally asked for this when I was a little boy seeing the show. Something in me told me that I was going to do it, and not that I just wanted to, but that I was going to.
"So to get the opportunity to step into this, I don't take it lightly. It's a huge honour. I feel as though I am walking in the footsteps of all of those that have come before me these last 40 years, and creating more new footsteps for those who will come after, and that's a thrill."
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The Gilded Age will be available to watch on Sky TV and HBO Max. You can sign up to NOW from £4.99 a month. And Phantom of the Opera's 40th anniversary run kicks off on 9 October.
Authors
Olivia Garrett
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