What do we know about Maud Beaton in The Gilded Age? Character explored, in depth

The Gilded Age Season 3 returned on July 22, 2025, and episode 5 offers a shock to the viewers in the form of Maud Beaton, who was last seen in Season 2. Maud had a rather twisted trajectory in the last season, as it was revealed that she was not who she pretended to be.

During her last appearance in The Gilded Age Season 2, Maud had conned Oscar van Rhijn, and that implied that she would be living somewhere comfortably with all that she had taken. However, when she reappears in the third season, her life seems to have gone in a completely different direction, as she is shown to be working as a hooker at the Haymarket.

Maud Beaton appears as Dolly Trent in The Gilded Age Season 3

After Maud had run away with Van’s money in Season 2, she was not shown again till The Gilded Age Season 3 Episode 5. In this episode, Larry Russell and Jack Trotter decide to celebrate their new financial gains, and instead of going to Delmonico’s for having a nice hot steak, they decide to go to Haymarket.

Haymarket is a place of real frivolities, as the guys can drink and hire sex workers for themselves there. While Larry and Jack are at the Haymarket, Larry suddenly takes notice of a particular sex worker, and much to his and the audience’s surprise, it is Maud.

Given how Maud had cheated Van, who was on the brink of proposing to her, thinking that she was a high-fi socialite of some sort, Larry goes to confront her. However, Maud initially appears shocked but immediately regains her composure.

She tells Larry that she does not know any Maud, and her name is Dolly Trent. Her profession is already clear, and before Larry can question her further, she goes away with a client of hers.

This trajectory of her character is indeed shocking, as the kind of money that she had taken from Van should have ensured a life of comfort and would not have required her to work as a hooker.

However, as she is back now, The Gilded Age Season 3 needs to answer a ton of questions about her. Viewers definitely want to know what she did with the money, how she transformed into Dolly Trent, and why she chose this life. All of these and more about her are expected to be delved into in the upcoming episodes of the show.

The Gilded Age can be streamed on Hulu.

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