Downton Abbey 2 Release Date & New Characters

Fans of Downton Abbey rejoiced when they heard the news that the Crawley family’s story is not over yet. The popular series left a lot of broken hearts when they went off air in 2016, with many fans anxious to get a few more glimpses at the Crawley family, its many footmen, maids, and members of the kitchen staff who worked with them.

That dream came true in 2019 with the release of the feature-length Downton Abbey film featuring the series original casts from Lady Mary and Henry Talbot to Mrs. Patmore and Daisy. The plot was based around a royal visit to the stately country home, and all the minute preparations that it entailed. According to jolly recent reports, the period drama is coming back, and they’ve got a festive release date to prove it.

Donwton Abbey Filming And Release Details

In April 2021, the news of the film’s dramatic Christmas return became a trending topic immediately the news arrived, with many fans expressing their happiness to get to meet their favorite characters again. Downton Abbey added to Christmas checklist? Check.

“After a very challenging year with so many of us separated from family and friends, it is a huge comfort to think that better times are ahead and that next Christmas we will be re-united with the much beloved characters of Downton Abbey,” the film’s producer, Gareth Neame, revealed in a statement.

In 2019, the show’s producers speculated that the show would be returning but that they were facing the big challenge of getting everyone back together in the movie. At the time, there were fears that the show may not be returning for a while because of how hard it was trying to get everybody in the film together at the same time. It was later confirmed that deals were still being made.

Downton Abbey 2 is finally expected to begin production this month and will see the return of the original cast, which included Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter, Michelle Dockery, Elizabeth McGovern, Maggie Smith, Imelda Staunton and Penelope Wilton. First-time cast members were announced as well, and include Hugh Dancy, Laura Haddock, Nathalie Baye and Dominic West.

It has been confirmed that the creator Julian Fellows will once again work on the film’s screenplay alongside other writers such as Gareth Neame and Liz Trubridge. Simon Curtis will be returning to direct the sequel.

“There’s no place like home for the holidays, and we can’t imagine a better gift than getting to reunite with Julian, Gareth, and the entire Downton family in 2021 to bring the Crawley’s back home for their fans.”

Not much is known of the upcoming sequel’s plot at present.

Reaction To The First Feature-Length Downton Abbey Film

The first Downton Abbey film was released in September 2019 in both the U.K. and the U.S. with the plot picking up in 1927, just a couple of years after the series ended. The film grossed nearly $97 million at the domestic box office, quickly becoming Focus Features’ highest-grossing film of all time.

The fan-favorite critically acclaimed show won three Golden Globe Awards and 15 Prime-time awards during its six season run.

Even before the release of the first film, the show’s writer and director began hinting at a “potential” sequel.

Fellowes jokingly urged fans to keep in mind the possibility of a sequel happening when he commented, “I haven’t killed off half the cast in a Coronation Street style crash so a follow-up is a definite possibility.”

Keep checking Celebrating The Soaps for more Downton Abbey news and movie updates.