Remember me
Warning: spoilers ahead for : The Grand Finale.
Few can boast career longevity like the cast of Downton Abbey.
“It’s quite rare in an actor’s career to have something that you go back to — like a regular job,” says one of its stars, , famed for her performance as the unyielding and oft-mischievous Lady Mary Crawley.
Dockery is reflecting on a whopping 15 years spent with this character, the two so closely entwined that the reality of never playing her again has, admittedly, taken some time to sink in. “It’s reached it’s end now,” she tells The Hollywood Reporter. “We’re soaking up this final, final one.”
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Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is the third film in a trilogy that spawned from the wild popularity of ITV and PBS’ six-season show set among the halls of a grand, stately home in early 20th century England. We pick up as Mary — as glamorous as ever, perhaps even more so — is caught in the throes of divorce, a scandalous development for women of that era. She is swiftly ousted from society, a plot point that came as a shock to Dockery, even if the split from Henry Talbot (a charming Matthew Goode) did not. “There was already rumblings of their marriage being on the rocks in A New Era, so I wasn’t surprised when I read it,” she says. “What I was surprised by were the reactions towards women at that time who were divorced.”
As Mary’s family attempts to rally around the Downton heiress, Robert (Hugh Bonneville) and Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) are navigating their way through more financial strife, with those downstairs also left to ponder what the future holds for aristocratic homes like theirs. The world is changing, after all, and some aren’t adapting fast enough.
“Ultimately the film’s about passing the baton on from one generation to another,” continues Dockery. “Even though the last film was called A New Era, that’s what you’re seeing in this film — the new chapter.” Returning to shepherd in the final phase for these beloved characters are Allen Leech, Laura Carmichael, Harry Hadden-Paton, Jim Carter, Penelope Wilton, Phyllis Logan, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Joanne Froggatt and Robert James-Collier. Paul Giamatti, Alessandro Nivola and Dominic West also star. Both the absence and presence of the late Maggie Smith, beloved for her role as the whip-smart Violet Crawley, was also felt: “There was almost a quiet that fell when she walked onto set,” Dockery recalls. “[Everyone] had that respect for her.”
Below, the British actress reminisces on the best of Downton Abbey and talks a little about what’s coming after it. She discusses an alternate ending for The Grand Finale, which character she’d play if given the opportunity to swap and what it is about Downton that kept audiences coming back for six seasons and three films: “To be a part of something that gives people that comfort and that ease — it’s a gift.”
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How are you feeling about the prospect of never returning to Mary again?
It’s definitely sinking in now because we finished the New York tour last Thursday, and there’s just been a couple of things since then. But it’s reached its end now. I still feel really excited about people seeing [the film] and the response has been amazing so far. Yeah, we’ve all spent this time reflecting a lot on the last 15 years and just soaking up this final, final one.
What are your biggest takeaways from the last 15 years?
Well, it’s really the friends that I’ve made. We say it a lot, but we are like a family. What I’ll take with me is the friendships and [I’m] just very grateful for having been part of something that has been so beloved for such a long time. It’s quite rare, I think, in an actor’s career, to have something that you go back to — like a regular job! It’s really unusual. You don’t normally step back into something that has been ongoing for such a long time. So, yeah, I feel very grateful to have been part of it.
Michelle Dockery and Laura Carmichael in season three of PBS’ Downton Abbey.
Joss Barratt/©PBS/Courtesy Everett Collection
What do you think it is that people have loved so much about Downton Abbey — I know I find an immense sense of comfort in these characters. Julian [Fellowes] said it’s a lot to do with each character having that goodness in them.
I think comfort is the word. If we sum it up in one word, that’s the one that I always come back to, because people do find it very soothing. … And I understand that with period drama — I’ve always found it very soothing. I’ve just started season three of [Fellowes’] The Gilded Age and I feel the same about that. I’m sure that’s how people feel about Downton.
But Julian’s right. Ultimately, these characters are just trying to be good people. I think it’s a very human look at characters. Each character has their own personality and their own story. And I think for the audience, there was always someone that they could relate to in some way, or someone’s storyline that they could relate to and find very comforting. So many times we have people say that Downton has been a big part of their lives. … They’ve been through various ups and downs, or a difficult time in their life with an ill family member, and Downton was a big comfort for them. That’s something we all feel really proud of, to be a part of something that gives people that comfort and that ease. It’s a gift to be able to give that to people. You could talk for hours about the ingredients that go into it that make it what it is and made it so popular. But ultimately, I think people love sitting down, having a cup of tea and devouring this wonderful time period and great characters.
In Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, Mary is struggling to rediscover her place in society as a divorced woman. I was a huge fan of Henry and Mary’s relationship, so I’m keen to know your reaction when you first read the script.
Well, I knew Matthew [Goode] wasn’t going to be part of this third one, so I was interested to see where the story would take it. There were already rumblings of their marriage being on the rocks in A New Era, so I wasn’t surprised when I read it. What I was surprised by were the reactions towards women at that time who were divorced, and that’s something that we really had to lean into, just in preparation and in rehearsals, those stakes had to be really high. Because as a modern woman, it was shocking to see that she was pushed out of society. [Laughs.] It makes for great jeopardy and high stakes for the story. It kind of acts as the core storyline that almost ricochets out and affects everybody. [We had to] build that tension as much as possible, but ultimately the film’s about passing the baton on from one generation to another. Because even though the last film was called A New Era, that’s what you’re seeing in this film. The new chapter.
How did you feel about where the film ended, with Mary at the helm and her parents in the Dower house? I presume it wasn’t filmed chronologically, but what was that moment like on set where you’re looking at those memories in the foyer?
I think that was the last moment I shot at Highclere [Castle], the last scene, and it was just me and Simon because, of course, there’s no other actors. It’s what Mary is seeing in her imagination, all of these memories. So he kind of talked me through each piece that they were hoping to find, because they were, going to trawl through the edit of 15 years and find those beats, Mary and Matthew — that was the obvious one — dancing around the gramophone. So I knew what I was expecting there, what I was looking at there, and then a shot of Maggie walking through and then Sybil. They played the music over speakers for me, which was so helpful to really get into what that was going to feel [and] look like. Half the challenge, actually, for me in that scene was not crying and not bursting into tears as Michelle. [Laughs.] Because of course, Mary is stoic. She’s very good at holding back the tears, so it was quite a challenge that last moment.
But there were a couple of versions of the ending. There was another version where you saw Mary go back to work, she goes into the library and she sits at her desk. They decided to end it on the tribute to Maggie, which I think is the best ending. I always felt that it was the right way to finish. [Mary, Cora and Robert] are saying their goodbyes and I think that’s for the audience — this feeling of moving on and saying farewell to each other. But in reality, Mary’s not alone. She’s in the house with various other people, of course, all the staff. She’s got family members who are going to be coming and I think it looks forward to the future. It feels quite hopeful. I also like that at the end of this story, Mary ends up as a single woman. There’s a new chapter ahead of her, she’s happier, and she’s excited to take the reins and become the lady of the house. It’s the end, but it feels like it’s ongoing.
What would another instalment of Downton look like, into the Second World War? How do you envision the next 30, 40 years of Mary’s life, or is that up to Julian?
It’s Julian’s territory, I think. It’s really up to the creators, if they want to continue it in some way. I feel like this iteration with this cast and these characters, it is the end. Whether they do a prequel [or] a sequel, it’s really up to the creators. But for us, there had to be a point where it was a definitive ending. There’s been a lot of endings for us, the series and then the first film, we weren’t sure if we were going to do another one. So, you know, this does feel quite finite.
Left to right: Penelope Wilton, Allen Leech, Michelle Dockery and Paul Giamatti in ‘Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale.’
Rory Mulvey/Focus Features
When you look back on the last 15 years, are there any highlights or particular storylines that you enjoyed — or didn’t?
So many. It’s outside of filming, but the circus that ignited when the first series came out and when it hit America, that was a wild time. A lot of traveling. We were promoting it three times a year, there were various awards ceremonies. That felt like a whirlwind, looking back, and [it was] a lot of fun. But what was so great is that there was all of that happening outside of it, but whenever we came back to work and back to the series, it’s like nothing had changed. We were back together again as a family, and we were like, “What’s the next script then?”
As far as story goes, I really loved season six for Mary. I feel like she really comes into her own in that series. There’s a lot of highs and lows in it. She goes through her most unhappy, angry phase, where her and Edith really go for one another, and Edith has her moment — which was hugely satisfying for me and Laura to play. I liked that. She’s such a multi-faceted character, Mary, but I feel like Julian really got her peak out at that point [with] her various levels of emotion. That was really fun for me to play. The films have been different. They felt different. It was [shooting for] three months of the year, as opposed to six or seven months. They came in these bursts over over a few years, and it felt the same but different. It just felt like a slightly different job, because it was film, and we’d since left the show so people are off doing various other things. It was always really special to come back together after three years and do another one. And it was even more lavish for the last film.The costumes got even more extraordinary, and they were a lot of fun. It’s been magic. Then, of course, all the times I had with Maggie. I feel so honored to have spent that time with her, and to have had that much screen time with a maverick like her.
Did you feel her absence while making this last film?
Definitely. I mean, Maggie passed away after we finished the film, but she was such a presence on set, and there was almost a quiet that fell when she walked onto set, [everyone] had that respect for her. I was always really excited to work with her again and see what Julian had in store for us, see what scenes we had together. But she’s mentioned so much in this film, Violet, and her famous quote: “What is a weekend?” There’s obviously moments of her and the framed, beautiful portrait of her, so she felt present in many ways. We did a lot of reminiscing about our times with Maggie. So it was a bit of both.
It was so touching and honored her character wonderfully. If you could have played any other Downton character, who would you have gone for?
There’s a few. I often say Thomas. I wouldn’t actually be cast as Thomas, but I just loved his story arc and I loved the relationship between him and Mary, actually. I think Mary really understood him. I always enjoyed seeing Rob [James-Collier]’s performance. And I think Anna is just such a lovely [character]. She’s the most pure of all the characters, she’s just a good person and I always love playing those scenes with Jo [Froggatt]. They’re two very different characters, but it would be fun to play someone below stairs, for sure.
I also think Mary and Anna’s relationship is one of the sweetest.
Yeah. They’re so close and really close in age. They became each other’s confidant, really, particularly Anna for Mary. So that was Jo [for me]. I always really enjoyed our times working together because it was so contained. Sometimes we just did two days of Anna and Mary scenes, and there was no other cast. It was almost like doing a play.
Life after Downton Abbey then… You have a baby on the way — congratulations! — but what catches your attention now? Are you able to talk about what’s next, and does it involve a break from period dramas?
[Laughs.] Thank you. For me, it’s all about great storytelling. It starts with the script, it always starts with the writing. There’s some interesting things that I’m looking at for next year. So I’m just excited for this next chapter. I’m looking forward to seeing what’s around the corner and this career is always so surprising. I tend not to be too strategic about what I do next, because often something else comes along and… It’s never straightforward. So [I hope] to just continue working with great writers and directors and actors.
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is in theaters now.
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