An entire year has passed since the Crawley family and their beloved staff signed off for good, and I am still not over it. That's why it is so heartening to hear that Michelle Dockery thinks a Downton Abbey movie will happen. Now, she's not sure on the when, but if Lady Mary is confident about returning to Downton, that is good enough for me.
During an interview with Town & Country, Dockery had this to say about a Downton Abbey reunion movie,
"We are still hopeful. I think that these things take time, but I think there is definitely a possibility. And that's all I can say! That's all the information I can share."
Since it hasn't been long since the show ended, there's no rush to get the Crawleys to the big screen. The cast has been busy since they left the manor, with Dockery starring in TNT's Good Behavior and The Sense of the Ending, and her former onscreen love Dan Stevens taking on the role of the Beast in Disney's Beauty and the Beast. The rest of the show's expansive cast have been nabbing jobs on a regular basis too, making schedule coordination a nightmare, I'm sure.
Thankfully, it seems most of the castmembers are game for a reunion movie at some point, as is series creator Julian Fellowes. As recently as January, Fellowes told The Telegraph he was working on a script, just in case producers decided to give the project a greenlight. Knowing the show's creator hasn't left the world of Downton behind is all the more reason to hope for another round of upstairs/downstairs drama in the future.
For many, joining the Crawley family for an hour of decadent, soapy goodness each week was a welcome escape from the doldrums of the everyday. Given the current exhausting political climate, being able to escape to Downton again would be a welcome relief. The family, as well as the staff full of vibrant characters, were a joy to watch — especially Dame Maggie Smith's Dowager Countess.
While it may still be a ways off, the promise of a Downton Abbey movie is reward enough. There's just no way Lady Edith and Lady Mary's truce lasts forever, and who doesn't want to see how Anna and Bates are getting on with their little one? No matter what time period Fellowes decides to set the story in, a return to Downton will be more than welcome whenever it happens.
Now, can someone please give the man a firm "yes" so the in-demand cast can block out some time in their schedules for one more visit to the Abbey?
