“The Gilded Age” killed off Claybourne Elder’s beloved character on Sunday night’s episode. John, who was a descendant of President John Adams, was fatally struck by a speeding horse carriage on the streets of New York City, moments after sharing a romantic exchange with his former lover Oscar van Rhijn (Blake Ritson).

The penultimate episode of the third season of The Gilded Age ended not with the clang of a champagne glass, but with a bang (quite literally) when the Russell family patriarch found himself on the receiving end of a gun moments before the credits rolled.