The headlines:
Who’s in the cast of Downton Abbey: A New Era?
The entire cast of Downton Abbey is returning for the second film, including Maggie Smith as the much-quoted Dowager Countess.
When is the release date for Downton Abbey: A New Era?
After a number of delays, Downton Abbey: A New Era will officially premiere on 29 April 2022 in the UK.
What’s the plot of Downton Abbey: A New Era in a nutshell?
While the first movie centred on the Downton Abbey residents’ preparations for a visit from King George V and Queen Mary, the second feature is all about cinematic royalty, with the house serving as the backdrop for a film. Other major events shaking up the lives of the Crawleys? Tom Branson’s forthcoming society wedding and Cousin Violet’s surprise inheritance of a French villa.
Where can I watch Downton Abbey: A New Era?
Downton Abbey: A New Era will be released in cinemas, although it will no doubt be available on streamers in due course, too.
Is there a trailer for Downton Abbey: A New Era?
Not just one, but two – find them both, below.
The details:
The first Downton Abbey film arrived on the big screen in all its sun-drenched, sequin-strewn glory in 2019, four years after Julian Fellowes’s smash hit ITV period drama concluded. Its sequel was initially expected to be released on 22 December 2021 before being delayed to 18 March 2022 as a result of the pandemic. On 26 January, it was pushed back once again – this time, to 29 April – in the hopes that audiences will feel more comfortable returning to the cinema en masse in the spring rather than at the tail end of an Omicron-disrupted winter.
Thankfully, Hugh Bonneville (Robert Crawley), Elizabeth McGovern (Cora Crawley), Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary Talbot), Laura Carmichael (Edith Pelham) and Jim Carter (Charles Carson) will all be in attendance. So too will Maggie Smith as the Dowager Countess, in spite of the fact that Violet revealed she had a terminal illness at the end of the first film, encouraging Lady Mary to run Downton in her stead. Meanwhile, the new additions will include Laura Haddock, Hugh Dancy, Nathalie Baye and Dominic West. After making his Highclere Castle debut, the latter will head to Kensington Palace – in November, we’ll see him play Prince Charles alongside Elizabeth Debicki’s Princess Diana in the fifth season of The Crown.
Fellowes said as much during an interview with People in November 2021. “I like the idea that people go into the movie and have a great two hours and then go out to have dinner,” he added. “If we are useful for cheering people up and giving them an easy time of it, that doesn’t bother me.” In terms of further clues as to what fans can expect, he revealed that the film would pick up where the last left off – 1927 to be precise – but also look to the future. “It’s really a new era,” he said. “The further the ’20s went along, the more the world was changing in so many ways. Everything from entertainment to transport was really different by the end of the ’20s. As we know from the last film, Mary may not be the titular head of the household, but she is effectively running the show. We take that further. We’re trying to mark the change – the fact that the Crawleys of Downton are nearly in the 1930s, which is merely the beginning of the modern world.”
While most plot details are being kept under wraps, a teaser trailer released on 15 November gave audiences a glimpse of what’s to come. It invited them to “the grandest escape of the year”, opening with sweeping shots of the fictional Yorkshire estate before entering the parlour as Violet tells the family that she’s come into the possession of a villa in the South of France. Cue lavish summer soirées, speedboat rides, newcomer Laura Haddock strutting out of a car in a fur-trimmed cape, and footage of widower Tom Branson (Allen Leech) marrying maid Lucy Smith (Tuppence Middleton) in a joyous ceremony. Conspicuously absent from their wedding portrait? Violet, which raises questions about her health, and Mary’s husband Henry Talbot (Matthew Goode), which raises questions about the state of their marriage.
On 15 February, an official trailer followed. It included new shots of Haddock, Baye, West and Dancy, revealing that the latter is taking on the role of a producer and director seeking to make a film at Downton. Carson is predictably outraged, while Daisy (Sophie McShera) and Anna (Joanne Froggatt) are swooning over West, who appears to be playing a dashing leading man. “The modern world comes to Downton,” grins Cora. Violet, however, is less impressed. “I should’ve thought that the best thing about films is that you can’t hear them,” she growls, after hearing about talking pictures. “It would be better if you couldn’t see them either.”
Co-hosted by Jacqueline Coley and Anita Rani, Downton Abbey: The Official Podcast is catnip for fans – a new series in which the creators and cast members of the show and subsequent films reflect on their favourite plotlines, characters, fan reactions and hopes for the future of the franchise. Don’t miss Fellowes reminiscing about the real-life stories that inspired him, Dockery talking about the other character she’d liked to have played, and Carmichael revealing why some of Lady Edith’s most tragic scenes were hilarious to shoot. Oh, and prepare for goosebumps as soon as the opening music plays.
In an interview with Deadline ahead of the release of his new show set in 1880s New York, the stalwart was asked if the worlds of these two franchises could collide. “I’ve learned this much, never say never,” he responded, smiling. “I’ll stick with that as my answer.” Might we see a teenage Cora Crawley, née Levinson, waltzing across a Fifth Avenue ballroom in future seasons? It’s certainly possible.
