‘Downton Abbey’ Movie In The Works, Though Actors Seem Unaware

The cultural phenomenon Downton Abbey, which ended its series run in 2015, will not only return, but will finally get an upgrade from the small screen to the big one.

With production likely to begin in 2018, an NBCUniversal executive confirmed that a movie adaptation of the TV show is in the works on Wednesday at a red-carpet event for “Downton Abbey: The Exhibition.”

“There is a movie in the works. It’s been in the works for some time,” Michael Edelstein, president of NBCUniversal International Studios told reporters. “We are working on getting the script right and then we’ve got to figure out how to get the [cast] together. Because as you know, people go on and do other things. But we’re hopeful to make a movie sometime next year.”

Speaking of the cast, many of them, at least the ones at the exhibition, were unaware that the Downton Abbey movie had made this much progress.

Said Sophie McShera, who played Daisy Mason on the series, “We have no idea if that’s happening. But we would all love to be part of the film if it was to happen, for sure.”

Laura Carmichael, who played Lady Edith Crawley, echoed her co-star’s sentiment, noting, “Well, tell my agent, because we’re still waiting to know. We’re hoping that will happen soon.”

The exhibition opened in Singapore on Wednesday and features costumes, locations, and never-before-seen footage from the show. It will run in the city-state until July 31. Afterwards, the exhibition will spend some time in the UK and later, some time in the United States.

Downton Abbey ran for six seasons (52 episodes) on PBS in the US and explored the lives of an aristocratic family living in England during the early decades of the Twentieth Century. In the show, audiences experience historical events, including the sinking of the Titanic and World War I, through the eyes of the wealthy Crawley family and those who work for them.

The show, considered to be one of the most popular in the world, aired in at least 150 countries.