Dame Maggie Smithand her celebratedDownton Abbeycharacter Violet, the Dowager Countess of Grantham, will receive a meaningful tribute in thefranchises third movie, set to arrive next year.
Speaking recently withTVLine,Downton Abbeyexecutive producer Gareth Neame revealed that the new movie was already set to contain a tribute to Violet, who (spoiler alert) died at the end of 2022sDownton Abbey: A New Era.
Smith, herself,died this past September, and Neame said that while the in-movie tribute was being filmed, he could feel it extending to both character and actress.
Smith in Season Two of ‘Downton Abbey’Nick Briggs / © Carnival Films for Masterpiece/PBS/Everett Collection
The fact that Dame Maggie herself has now passed away since that time, I do think, has given a real added poignancy to a story that we would have planned anyway, Neame said.
The loss of the Dowager, it now feels far more significant that you see actors playing characters mourning the family matriarch.
But I also see actors mourning the matriarch of the show, and it feels more genuine and more meaningful.
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Naeme went on to say that he believed the wholeDownton Abbeyteams huge respect for [Smith]… will come across in the next movie.
The producer also called her death the end of an era and said, We will never see the like of DameMaggie Smithever again.
Downtown Abbey 3(which doesnt have an official title yet) is set to arrive in theaters next September.
The film will feature much of theoriginal core cast, including Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern, returning as Robert and Cora Crawley, the heads of the Grantham estate.
It will also boast the return of Paul Giamatti, who will reprise his role as Coras brother, the wealthy American playboy Harold Levinson, who first appeared in the 2013Downton AbbeyChristmas special.
