The Gilded Age season 3 finale airs stunning cliffhanger for Bertha Russell

Their relationship seems to be on the brink of implosion after this week's finale – titled My Mind Is Made Up – which suggests that divorce could be on the cards for the new money duo.

They haven't seen eye-to-eye for some time, with their daughter's arranged marriage to the Duke of Buckingham (Ben Lamb) not sitting right with George, who had wanted Gladys (Taissa Farmiga) to pursue a genuine love.

Quizzed on the storyline, The Gilded Age creator Julian Fellowes told Deadline: "He feels that she made him act against his instincts and he did it. That's what he can't forgive, of course.

"Bertha is more pragmatic on the whole than George. For Bertha, Gladys and the Duke are happy, they're getting along, what's the problem? Everything's fine. Whereas for George, it's a deeper consideration."

He added: "But what almost frightens George is that his wife has been able to manipulate him into doing something with which he completely disagrees."

The screenwriter clarified that, although George's unhappiness pre-dates his near-fatal shooting in the penultimate episode, that traumatic incident has certainly made him "look at his life more searchingly".

But while he's shaken enough to walk out, it's not yet clear whether he and Bertha's marriage is definitively doomed.

In a separate chat, Coon told Deadline: "I feel like Bertha is pretty relentless. I don't think she’s gonna let him go without a fight. But yeah, it was sad that they were in conflict this season."

However determined she might be, Coon also conceded that Bertha is "smart enough" to anticipate the "possibility" of her divorce, which at that period in history carried a risk of being "ousted" from high society.

Coon shared that Bertha's reaching out to Aurora Fane (Kelli O'Hara), another socialite being threatened with divorce, is not entirely "altruistic" but partly motivated by where she too might end up.

"It is about the future," explains Coon. "I think she also manages to talk herself into a new value, a new crusade."

The Gilded Age was renewed for season 4 earlier this month, with the show's following growing year-on-year as word of mouth spreads on the lavish and intriguing production.

The Gilded Age is available on Sky and NOW.

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