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Good news, period drama fans — the Downton Abbey saga isn't quite finished yet.
After six seasons and two films, the Crawley family (and their team of servants below stairs) are set to return to the big screen once more.
The show, which began in 2010 and ran until 2015, followed the Crawleys, an aristocratic family whose life in the rambling Downton Abbey estate was threatened by the changing social climate during after World War I.
The show was a star-making vehicle for many of the cast — it introduced us to Michelle Dockery as the haughty Mary Crawley, Jessica Brown Findlay as her forward-thinking younger sister, Sybil, and Dan Stevens as their middle class (gasp!) cousin, Matthew. It was also the biggest showcase of some of Britain's acting legends since Harry Potter, featuring the likes of Maggie Smith, Imelda Staunton, Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter, Penelope Wilton, and many others.
The news of the third film was announced on X (formerly Twitter) alongside a behind-the-scenes video showing the cast as they returned for the table read of the film.
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Staunton, who played Maud Bagshaw, a lady-in-waiting to Queen Mary who visited Downton in the first film, had previously hinted that a third and final film was in the works, telling BBC Radio 2, "There will be the final film — there you go."
Can't wait to find out how the Crawleys are faring at the dawn of the 1930s? Here's everything we know about the third instalment so far.
What will Downton Abbey 3 be about?
We don't know too much about what the third film will be about, it will be set some time after the events of the second film, Downton Abbey: A New Era, which was set in 1928 and saw Downton being used as a film set. At the end of the film, the Crawley matriarch, Lady Violet Crawley (played to perfection by a quippy Maggie Smith) died, passing the “Downton torch” to her granddaughter, Lady Mary. The third film will likely follow Mary's first years as mistress of Downton — and as the 1930s approach and society continues to change, it may even see the Crawleys changing their ways and using their grand estate in a new way.
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Who will appear in Downton Abbey 3?
Many familiar faces will be returning to Downton for its final act. Focus Features has already confirmed that Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Phyllis Logan, Robert James-Collier, Joanne Froggatt, Allen Leech, Penelope Wilton, Lesley Nicol, Michael Fox, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Kevin Doyle, Harry Hadden-Paton, Sophie McShera, and Douglas Reith will all return after originating their roles in the original series. Dominic West also reprises his role from Downton Abbey: A New Era, playing silent film actor Guy Dexter.
The third film will also feature a few new faces. Paul Giamatti is set to star as Cora Grantham’s brother Harold Levinson, while Joely Richardson (Lady Chatterley's Lover), Alessandro Nivola (Disobedience), renowned stage and screen actor Simon Russell Beale and Arty Froushan (House of the Dragon and Carnival Row) are also joining the cast.
Sadly, we probably won't be seeing Maggie Smith in this film as her character passed away at the end of the last film.
Is there a trailer for Downton Abbey 3?
Not yet! However, we do have a small teaser trailer that shows the cast sitting down for their first table read.
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“It feels amazing. And emotion,” says a smiling Michelle Dockery as she reunites with her castmates.
“It's wonderful all to be back together again. We come back together and it's like no time has passed at all,” she goes on, before announcing that the third film is officially in production, concluding, “We can't wait to see you.” Right back at you, Lady Mary!
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When will Downton Abbey 3 come out?
We don't have a release date for the third and final Downton Abbey film yet, but we're probably looking at 2025 seeing as the film has only just entered production.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
