Contents
They’re Crawley-ing back to you. After six seasons and two movies, the final installment of the Downton Abbey franchise is fast approaching. Who’s ready to say good-bye? Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is set to be a giant reunion, both on and offscreen. In addition to a cast packed with familiar faces, Downton Abbey: A New Era director Simon Curtis has returned to direct a screenplay from franchise creator, writer, and executive producer Julian Fellowes. This will be the first Downton story without the late Dame Maggie Smith there to play the Dowager Countess, though the first teaser trailer from Focus Features still finds a way to pay tribute to her. Below, everything to know.
They’re not selling the Abbey, are they? The teaser trailer reminds us that “it’s time to say goodbye” before we see the Earl of Grantham kissing his hand and placing it gently on one of the front walls of his country estate. But we can’t say for sure whether that smooch represents a final farewell, because actual plot details remain sparse. According to a press release, the film “follows the Crawley family and their staff as they enter the 1930s.” As the cast navigates how to “lead Downton Abbey into the future, they must embrace change and welcome a new chapter.”
We’re also off to the (horse) races with several shots of the cast at an equestrian event. Mary picks out a dress that photographers can’t get enough of and shares a silent moment with a portrait of the Dowager Countess. But other than Harold Levinson’s apparently important appearance, there’s only so much else to ponder in this short clip.
Who’s in the Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale cast?
Plenty of familiar faces. Michelle Dockery’s Lady Mary leads an ensemble cast that also includes [deep breath] Hugh Bonneville, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Kevin Doyle, Michael Fox, Joanne Froggatt, Paul Giamatti, Harry Hadden-Paton, Robert James-Collier, Allen Leech, Phyllis Logan, Elizabeth McGovern, Sophie McShera, Lesley Nicol, Dominic West, and Penelope Wilton.
Click here to preview your posts with PRO themes ››
Is Mary still married? We don’t know, but don’t get your hopes up about seeing Henry Talbot. Matthew Goode was unable to reprise his role in the film because he was filming Netflix’s Department Q and then recovering from a knee operation, he told Radio Times magazine in May.
Meanwhile, even a final chapter still has room for some new beginnings: Joely Richardson, Alessandro Nivola, Simon Russell Beale, and Arty Froushan will all make their Downton franchise debuts in this film.
And Paul Giamatti’s character is crucial to the plot?
According to him, yes, though we don’t know why. Harold Levinson was previously a side character, but Giamatti talked up his role in the third film to Entertainment Weekly in March. “I do something quite important in this. I was like, wow, this is random, I have a lot to do with the end of this whole series,” he said. “I do something of real significance — good or bad, I’m not going to say! But, I do something that makes a big difference to how everything ends.”
When is Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale coming out?
The film arrives in theaters on September 12, 2025.
Is this really the end?
As far as we know. Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is being billed as both the final film in the period drama franchise and the conclusion to the six-season television show. Cast quotes about the project have carried a pretty solid sense of finality. “This time around, I think we really relished every minute [of filming],” Dockery told Collider in January. “It being the last, it felt really, really special. Like anything, when something comes to an end, it’s emotional but just such a happy place to be. It’s always been a very happy place to be and a wonderful thing to be part of for the last 15 years.” But hey, if Fellowes ever changes his mind, we’re sure he could get away with doing, say, Downton Abbey: The Unexpected Prequel.
