'Downton Abbey' To Put The End Board After Season 6, Movie Version Being Contemplated

It is official now. British period drama series “Downton Abbey” will put the end board after the upcoming Season 6. The final episode will air on Christmas day this year. There was much speculation about the future when it was reported that Maggie Smith, 80, who plays Lady Violet Crawley on the show, will be departing after the next season. Also, the contracts of most of the actors were up for renewal after Season 6.

The official “Downton Abbey” Twitter account announced on March 26, “The time has come to announce that Series 6 will be our final visit to #Downton. Thank you for sharing our journey!”

Gareth Neame, executive producer of the show, said in a statement that they wanted to “close the doors” on their historical drama series when it felt right. He promised that the final season would be full of “all the usual drama and intrigue, but with the added excitement of discovering how and where they all end up ..."

Meanwhile, Neame has not ruled out the possibility of a movie version. He said that they would be interested in doing the movie version and they are “definitely” contemplating it. Deadline.com has quoted him as saying that it would be a “wonderful extension,” adding that he and Julian Fellowes, creator of the show, “would be very interested if we get our ducks in a row.”

The production on Season 6 of “Downton Abbey” is expected to begin soon. The cast recently assembled at the Savoy London for the table read. The Twitter account has posted photographs from the read through. [Check the photos here].

“Downton Abbey” Season 5 wrapped up with Mrs Hughes agreeing to Carson’s marriage proposal while the final episode also saw Lady Isobel turning down Lord Merton’s proposal because his sons would not agree to the union. Branson was sticking to his plan of leaving Downton and going to Boston with his daughter Sybbie. Bates was reunited with his wife Anna. He had disappeared after deciding to confess that he killed Mr Green. It is thanks to Moseley and Baxter’s efforts to clear his name that Bates returned to the estate. Mary remained single.

For your comments/feedback on the article, you may contact the writer at a.shrivastava@IBTimes.com.au.