Downton Abbey 2 Movie Confirmed By Hugh Bonneville

Actor Hugh Bonneville has revealed that a Downton Abbey 2 movie is on its way in the near future. The 57-year-old starred as Lord Grantham in the acclaimed ITV period drama for six seasons, from 2010 to 2015, before a successful feature film arrived in 2019. The series was created by author Julian Fellowes and quickly grew into something far greater than a standard account of British aristocracy in post-Edwardian era England.

Dealing with the extensive goings on of the Crawley family, Downton Abbey allowed viewers into the densely layered hierarchy of the eponymous estate’s domestic life. Throughout the series, numerous real-life historical events played out, and a variety of engaging subplots kept viewers guessing as to what would happen next. In addition to its vast array of awards, it was also listed as having the highest critical review ratings for a TV show by the Guinness Book of World Records in 2011. All of this was enough to allow for the jump from the small screen to the big screen, and the tremendous success of the first film left ample room for more to come.

According to ET Canada, there’s plenty of reason for Downton Abbey fans to be excited once again, as Bonneville has confirmed another big screen outing for the Crawley family. But before that excitement gets too pronounced, Bonneville wants to assure fans that, first and foremost, the COVID-19 pandemic needs to be brought under control. Then and only then can the world’s favorite fictional aristocrats return. Bonneville emphasized the need for everyone to be vaccinated in the coming weeks and months as well, saying:

“If everybody who is offered a vaccine takes a vaccine, we can make a movie. We will make a movie. It’s the usual thing, the planets are circling, they’re beginning to get into alignment, but there’s this thing called coronavirus knocking around. Until that is under control in a sensible way, we’re not going to be able to get all those ducks in a row. There certainly is the intention to do it, we’d love to do it, we’re desperate to do it.”

Arguably the strongest selling point of the first Downton Abbey film was that it was surprisingly able to draw in viewers beyond its fanbase. While it’s not uncommon for a popular TV series to make new fans when adapted to the big screen, Downton Abbey has always maintained such an extensive number of characters, plots, and subplots that it isn’t exactly the simplest world to walk into uninitiated. The film’s ability to maintain Downton Abbey’s rich background while still providing enough intrigue for new audiences can hopefully continue into the sequel, though exactly when that will arrive is hard to say at this point.

Downton Abbey may be widely acclaimed, and the 2019 film certainly did better than some would have expected, but not all fans of the series are interested in seeing more. In some ways, the end of the series left things just as they needed to be, and Downton Abbey 2 is arguably unnecessary. But for the diehards and new fans, there’s nothing better than more time spent in the company of the Crawley’s, especially in a post-pandemic world.