The upcoming third Downton Abbey film will reportedly include a tribute to late acting legend Maggie Smith and her character, per a producer on the project.
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Dame Maggie Smith died in September this year at the age of 89. Throughout her esteemed career, Smith was celebrated for many roles, one of which was that of Dowager Violet Crawley in the Downton Abbey franchise. The franchise first began as an acclaimed TV series, before turning into a film series.
So far, two films have been made in the franchise; Downton Abbey (2019) and Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022). Smith’s character Dowager Violet Crawley dies at the end of the second film. A third film is in the works and is due to premiere in September next year.
Per executive producer Gareth Neame in a conversation with TVLine, the upcoming third film in the trilogy will include a tribute to the character and Smith herself.
Neame said: “The fact that Dame Maggie herself has now passed away since that time, I do think, has given a real added poignancy to a story that we would have planned anyway. The loss of the Dowager, it now feels far more significant that you see actors playing characters mourning the family matriarch. But I also see actors mourning the matriarch of the show, and it feels more genuine and more meaningful.”
He went on to calls her loss “the end of an era,” adding that “we will never see the like of Dame Maggie Smith ever again.”
During the original TV run of Downton Abbey – which ran from 2010 to 2015 – Smith’s portrayal of Violet Crawley earned her three Primetime Emmy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Golden Globe Award
Shortly after Smith’s death, Whoopi Goldberg shared a tribute on Instagram, writing in honour of her late Sister Act co-star: “Maggie Smith was a great woman and a brilliant actress. I still can’t believe I was lucky enough to work with the ‘one-of-a-kind’. My heartfelt condolences go out to the family… RIP.”
Dame Maggie Smith made her stage debut in 1956 and went on to win Oscars for her roles in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) and California Suite (1978). She also starred in the likes of Hook, Death On The Nile and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
She was made a Dame in 1990 for her services to the performing arts and is one of only a handful of people to have won a Triple Crown Of Acting – An Emmy, Tony and Oscar.
Following the news of her passing, friends and fans took to social media to pay tribute to the legendary actor. Presenter Gyles Brandreth said Smith’s death “marks the end of a golden era”. “She was a truly great actress, one of the greats’ & simply the best company: wise, witty, waspish, wonderful. One of a kind in every way & consequently irreplaceable,” he added.
Elsewhere, comedian Omid Djalili said “We’ve lost one the best today” while George Takei wrote: “A grand star of screen and stage has departed. Maggie Smith, known most recently for her unforgettable roles as the Dowager Countess in Downton Abbey and as Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter films, passed away at age 89. Fans both old and young shall miss her dearly.”
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