Isis the Labrador, one of the most loved characters in the hit ITV series "Downton Abbey," will not be killed off because of her name association with a Middle Eastern terrorist group, Hugh Bonneville said.
The 50-year-old actor who portrays the role of Lord Grantham stated that anyone who believes such conclusion is a "complete berk."
In the last episode of "Downton Abbey" season 5, Isis was diagnosed with cancer. This led to speculations that the producers of the show just decided to kill off the character of the yellow Labrador to prevent being associated with the jihadist group.
The Isis group is known for its atrocious beheadings of some of its hostages, including two British nationals named Alan Henning and David Haines.
Because of the social media uproar, Bonneville decided to defend the show's decision in his own social media account.
He said, "To clarify recent speculation, the Labrador that appeared in Series One (1912-14) was a dog called Pharaoh. From Series Two (1916-1920) onwards, the Labrador has been a bitch named – in keeping with the Egyptian theme – Isis. Anyone who genuinely believes the Series 5 storyline (1924) involving the animal was a reaction to recent world news is a complete berk."
Though the show claimed that Isis' impending death has nothing to do with the militant group, there are other establishments and organizations worldwide that decided to change their names because of the suspected association with the group.
Meanwhile, ITV already confirmed that "Downton Abbey" will return for its sixth season in 2015, and production will begin next year. .
"It is fantastic that Downton continues to be such a phenomenon - still the most popular drama on ITV in its fifth series - and we are thrilled to have commissioned a sixth series," ITV's director of drama commissioning Steve November recently declared.
The "Downton Abbey" season 5 finale is scheduled to air on Nov. 9.
