With the wide release of Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale in movie theaters this past weekend, it appears that the long-running TV series about an upper-crust British family in the early years of the 20th century has finally come to an end. It’s been quite a run since the serialized Downton Abbey, created and written by Julian Fellowes, had its September 2010 premiere on ITV in the U.K. and PBS in the U.S. The show lasted six seasons, ending in December 2015 after a total of 52 episodes. It was followed by two feature-film sequels and this final installment, with a subtitle suggesting that it is indeed the swan song for a franchise that has proved as durable as it is popular.
Over time, several television programs have found new life or continuation in movie form. Downton Abbey may be the latest example, but this sort of thing has been going on since at least the 1960s, when the campy, trendy Batman TV series spawned a more lavishly budgeted theatrical release to profit off the Batmania epidemic that gripped the nation. Star Trek: The Motion Picture — a 1979 movie that revived the original Star Trek and its starship crew a decade after NBC canceled the show — earned decent box office numbers, leading to a multitude of video and movie variants of the brand, with some continuing to be produced today.
There have been Addams Family films inspired by the sardonic ’60s ABC horror sitcom (which itself was based on the wry New Yorker cartoons by Charles Addams and led to the recent hit Netflix streaming series Wednesday); a pair of throwaway romcoms that caught up with the randy ladies of HBO’s Sex and the City; two middling movies spun off The X-Files, the Fox Network sci-fi procedural about a pair of FBI agents investigating the paranormal; and Serenity, an exultant big-screen sequel to the one-and-done season of the pioneering outer-space western Firefly, a series that Fox unceremoniously dumped despite glowing reviews.
Sprawling character-driven period drama
Whether it was a chance to resolve storylines after a show was prematurely given the axe, bleed some cash from a devoted fan base, or achieve greater visual or narrative scope than what was feasible on TV, these movies were made for better or worse. Because their target audiences are presumably grateful for a chance to revisit their favorites, these projects are almost critic-proof. And now, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale joins the fray. Anyone who diligently watched every minute of the television series and eagerly bought tickets to see 2019’s Downton Abbey and 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era should be ecstatic to get the closure provided by The Grand Finale. It’s only right that show creator Fellowes wrote the screenplay, a task he has taken on for virtually every chapter of Downton. No one knows the characters and settings better than he does, so no one is more suited to polish off their individual stories as well as bring the series to a close.
For the uninitiated (although they should probably not bother getting on board here), the entirety of Downton Abbey has examined the lives and interpersonal relationships of the aristocratic Robert Crawley (Hugh Bonneville), Earl of Grantham; his wife, American heiress Cora Levinson Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern), Countess of Grantham; their three daughters Mary (Michelle Dockery), Edith (Laura Carmichael), and Sybil (Jessica Brown Findlay), and their extended family, some of whom have passed in untimely fashion over the course of the series; and their generally loyal and occasionally sketchy servants. Although their exploits may be earthier than those of the master and mistresses of the house, the comings and goings and strife experienced by the butlers, maids, footmen, chauffeurs, and kitchen help are no less dramatic. And when upstairs meets downstairs, it’s even more captivating.
The saga, which weathered World War I during the TV episodes, reaches the 1930s in The Grand Finale — with everything that entails for the British class system and the state of the world economy. From their palatial Yorkshire countryside estate (the Downton Abbey of the title) to their tony townhouse amid the hustle and bustle of that era’s London, the Crawleys must contend with the usual familial squabbles; financial struggles due to the Stock Market crash of 1929; conflict amid the domestic staff; romantic angst for Lady Mary whose gender jeopardizes her status as the rightful heir to Downton while her divorce makes her a pariah among the upper crust; and even some guarded acceptance of different kinds of love upon a visit to the Crawleys’ manor by the legendary musical theater composer and scribe Noel Coward and his entourage, which includes closeted former Downton employee Barrow (Rob James-Collier) and his boyfriend, a famous thespian (Dominic West).
Friendly, familiar faces for the fans
All of this goes down as the spirit of the departed Violet Crawley (the late Maggie Smith), Dowager Countess of Grantham, lingers here and there. To reinforce hidebound traditionalist Violet’s influence as a voice of reason, a giant portrait of her is centrally located in the main hall of Downton, peering down at those who remain, while her granddaughters ask the occasional “What would Lady Violet do?” It’s a sure bet that confirmed viewers will be cheered by developments such as sweet-natured scullery maid Daisy (Sophie McShera) becoming the head cook at Downton and marrying kind-hearted butler-in-training Andy (Michael Fox).
With so many significant actors reprising their roles from previous excursions to Downton, the fan experience of watching The Grand Finale is truly like catching up with old friends. Jim Carter is back as stoic longtime head butler Mr. Carson, as is Phyllis Logan as housekeeper Mrs. Hughes; Joanne Froggatt as gutsy lady’s maid Anna; Brendan Coyle as Anna’s noble husband, valet John Bates; and so on. Almost everyone of note gets a curtain call, including relatively recent additions to the ensemble like Cora’s frivolous brother Harold, played by Paul Giamatti. Brief appearances by fictionalized versions of historical personages such as Coward and a couple of royals reinforce the place and time.
If The Grand Finale seems overstuffed, Fellowes (whose stateside period drama The Gilded Age is still going strong after three seasons on HBO) and director Simon Curtis (My Week with Marilyn) have a sizeable ensemble to accommodate. By the end of two hours, crises are averted or addressed, people come together or move on, and though an uncertain future lies ahead for the Crawleys and company, most Downtonians should be satisfied with how it ties up its bundle of loose ends. Downton Abbey, in its multiple incarnations, is a soap opera, but that soap is of the high-end lavender-fragranced variety, and this Grand Finale leaves a pleasant, musty smell.
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is currently in theaters.
Updated Sept. 18 at 3:30 p.m. to reflect correct photo caption of featured image.