Recently, AAFCA members Jill Munroe, DJ Lockhart, Nancy Greene, Ruben Peralta Rigaud, Caron LeNoir-Kelly, and GVN’s Jeffrey Peterson participated in a virtual roundtable with actress Denée Benton of The Gilded Age about her experience as a cast member on the breakout HBO show. Her insights into her time on the show, her goals for the future of her character, as well as her motivations for authentic portrayal, are highlighted by her character’s movement from secondary to central over three seasons.
The Gilded Age, executive-produced by Julian Fellowes of Downton Abbey fame, follows the lives of Americans of multiple class distinctions during the Industrial Revolution. The show stars Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, and Louisa Jacobson, as well as Taissa Farmiga, Cynthia Nixon, and Christine Baranski.
Benton, who plays a journalist and writer named Peggy Scott, cites multiple Black women, but especially Madame CJ Walker, as an inspiration for her fictional character. During the interview, she also reveals that she sees her character and self as connected through all of the previous generations that precede her. Additionally, she considers herself fortunate to work with so many talented actors, many of whom worked together on previous theatrical pieces.
Check out AAFCA’s interview below and make sure to stream The Gilded Age Seasons 1 through 3 on HBOMax. Season 4 was officially announced in July 2025 and will tentatively begin filming in February.
Jeffrey W. Peterson is a teacher, critic, and writer. He previously taught English Composition at Spelman College and the University of West Georgia, as well as Language Arts and percussion at metro-Atlanta high schools. He currently teaches at Fusion Academy in Alpharetta, GA, while pursuing a PhD in Moving Image Studies at Georgia State University. He has a BA in English, an MFA in Writing, and in addition to membership in Atlanta Film Critics Circle (AFCC), he’s also a member of the African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) and Black Film Critics Circle (BFCC), as well as a Tomatometer-approved critic. Previous work appears in Naija Nerds, The Streamr, Murphy’s Multiverse, and Indie Film Minute.
