It's official. The Crawley family and their servants will reunite once again in their Edwardian English country home for a "Downton Abbey" movie.
The series, which followed the Crawley family at the turn of 20th Century, ran for six seasons on PBS before ending in 2015 and received 15 Primetime Emmy awards and 69 nominations. It won for best miniseries or movie in 2011, before rule changes forced it into the drama series category. Nearly every regular cast member was nominated at one point or another; however, the only one to win was Maggie Smith for her supporting role as Violet, the Dowager Countess of Grantham.
Smith, Hugh Bonneville (who played her son, Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham) and the rest of the original principal cast are expected to return for production later this summer. Series creator Julian Fellowes, who wrote the series alone, will also handle the movie's screenplay. It will be directed by Brian Percival, who directed the series' pilot and five other episodes from early in the show.
“Since the series ended, fans of Downton have long been waiting for the Crawley family’s next chapter,” commented Peter Kujawski, the head of Focus Features, which will distribute the movie, in a press release Friday. “We’re thrilled to join this incredible group of filmmakers, actors and craftspeople, led by Julian Fellowes and (producer) Gareth Neame, in bringing back the world of Downton to the big screen.”
Actress Joanne Froggatt, who was nominated for an Emmy for her work as maid Anna Bates, took to Twitter to celebrate the announcement. "Delighted to announce we’re getting the band back together! #DowntonMovie #DowntonAbbey"
No news on the plot or when the film will take place has been released at this time.
KIRO
