Gilded Age Creator Reacts To That Long-Awaited Finale Kiss: 'We Always Knew They Were Headed For Each Other'

The Gilded Age wrapped its second season on Sunday with a lip lock we've been anticipating since the HBO period drama's earliest days.

After turning down Dashiell's proposal, explaining that they simply want different things out of life, Marian (Louisa Jacobson) found herself in the arms of none other than Larry Russell (Harry Richardson). And why shouldn't she? We've seen sparks from those two since Season 1, and we aren't the only ones. As series creator Julian Fellowes explains to TVLine, this coupling was more a matter of when than if.

"I think it was always in the background," Fellowes says. "Certainly when the actors were cast, they were cast as a couple who looked compatible on screen if we got there. You can never be too definite, because sometimes performances don't happen, or things occur, or ideas come in and your original plan isn't what's adhered to. But in that instance, I think we always knew they were headed for each other."

To answer your next question, yes, this means we're almost guaranteed more interactions between the true queens of 61st street — Marian's aunt Agnes (Christine Baranski) Agnes and Larry's mother Bertha (Carrie Coon).

"It might be quite nice to involve them in some situation that didn't depend on them liking each other but where they both had to turn up," Fellowes says of the dynamic characters enjoying more screen time together in a potential third season. "I think that we might look for some dramatic situations that would provide that."

Other finale developments worth discussing...

* Speaking of Larry, he has agreed to go into business with Jack, now that the inventor has secured his first official patent. (Don't lie, this alarm clock subplot had you on the edge of your seat all season. Such is the power of The Gilded Age.)

* Bertha was also victorious in the finale, with Mrs. Astor basically admitting defeat in their senseless opera war. So many casualties.

* Peggy informed Mr. Fortune that she can no longer work at the paper. She's grateful to him for helping her find her voice, but she just can't handle being so close... yet so far away.

* Ada's marriage may have ended in tragedy, but her late husband left behind an apparent fortune, which means Oscar's thoughtless gamble won't force the van Rhijns into financial ruin after all. It also means that Ada gets to call the shots around the house now, which we're sure will thrill Agnes to no end.

Were you also eagerly awaiting the finale's Marian/Larry kiss? Drop a comment with your thoughts on that twist (among others) below.