Downton Abbey bosses reveal it was 'terribly easy' to convince Maggie Smith that her character should be killed off as production ramps up on third film
Downtown Abbey producer Gareth Neame says has revealed that it was 'terribly easy' to convince Maggie Smith that her character should be killed off.
The 2022 film titled A New Era saw Maggie's acid-tongued character Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, pass away from a terminal illness, leaving die-hard fans in floods of tears.
'This was a terribly easy one, because she used to find the whole thing so draining at times,' he said.
'Every year, when another series would come round, she'd say: "Oh can't you just kill me off?" So when we eventually did, I think part of her might have been quite relieved.'
Neame is currently making a third Downton Abbey film, but says that it just wasn't sustainable to make any more TV series – even though ITV really wanted them to.
Downtown Abbey producer Gareth Neame says has revealed that it was 'terribly easy' to convince Maggie Smith that her character should be killed off
'We'd spend a third to half a year in production. I knew that wasn't going to be sustainable for ever. The actors wanted to do other things.'
At the end of June, the release date for the third Downton Abbey film was revealed as filming began in Yorkshire.
The new movie will be released worldwide on September 12, 2025, with Universal Pictures UK confirming the news on Instagram.
The caption read: 'A new motion picture event. The third film in the beloved #DowntonAbbey franchise will be released only in cinemas September 12, 2025.'
Hugh, Dominic West, Elizabeth, Michelle, Laura, Jim Carter, Phyllis Logan, Robert James-Collier are to return for the hotly-anticipated movie.
Joanne Froggatt - who recently confirmed she is pregnant with her first child - Allen Leech, Penelope Wilton, Lesley Nicol, Michael Fox, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Kevin Doyle, Harry Hadden-Paton, Sophie McShera, and Douglas Reith will also be back at Downton.
Joely Richardson, Alessandro Nivola and House of the Dragon actors Simon Russell Beale and Arty Froushan are also expected to join the third film in the franchise.
The cast looked in high spirits as they reunited to film scenes at the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate.
The 2022 film titled A New Era saw Maggie's character Violet Crawley, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, pass away from a terminal illness, leaving die-hard fans in floods of tears
At the end of June, t he release date for the third Downton Abbey film was revealed as filming began in Yorkshire
Plot details have so far remained under wraps about the upcoming motion picture, which is written by Julian Fellowes and produced by Gareth Neame, Fellowes and Liz Trubridge.
However it can be expected to follow 2022's A New Era, which ended in the late 1920s with the heartbreaking passing of Crawley matriarch, Lady Violet.
The third instalment was first let slip early by actress Imelda Staunton, who unashamedly announced that there would definitely be a 'third and final' film.
It was later confirmed by the show runners, who announced that there would be a 'third film in the beloved Downton Abbey franchise'.
However, while producers have 'tried to reunite the cast' some stars will be unable to return.
A TV insider told The Sun: 'None of the cast members were guaranteed to return.
'Although the producers have tried to reunite most of the Downton stars, not all of them have been able to commit, even if they did appear in the first two films.'
In February, The Mail revealed the period drama would be making a surprise comeback.
Bosses hoped to be able to bring back some of the big name actors who appeared in the previous six seasons and two movie spin-offs.
The show, which covered the many societal changes and world events between 1912 and 1928, is back on screens next year.
The hugely successful period drama started on ITV in 2010 and has spawned six seasons and two movies.
The first two films, released in 2019 and 2022, grossed a combined $287.3 million worldwide.
