The cast of "Downton Abbey" is currently filming season 6. The new chapter is a big one as many surmise that it will serve to tie everything in a beautiful knot.
The long-running series may be nearing its end as creator Julian Fellowes' plans of making another series about "The Gilded Age" are slowly being realized. As Carter Matt pointed out, Fellowes will work on a new show when "Downton Abbey" starts to wind down, and that particular series that is bound to focus on the post-Civil War era is likely to premiere this year.
However, executive producer Gareth Neame has an entirely new perspective on the question of the show's fate, which he is "asked a dozen times a day."
"I don't think I have ever known such speculation! Three years ago I was told that season three was the last!" he explained. "We'll call time when we think the time is right."
Whether season 6 will be the end of "Downton Abbey" is, therefore, unknown. What's sure is that is has a lot in store for fans.
For one, the new season may mark the return of Tom Branson and Lady Rose, characters played by Allen Leech and Lily James, respectively. Although they have already found a new home far from Britain, there is one way Neame can bring them back.
"Both their characters have travelled to America to make new lives, but they are members of this family so a visit home may well happen at some time," Neame told Deadline.
While season 6 may not be the show's last, it looks like it will be for Maggie Smith, who plays Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, in the series.
"They say this is the last one. I can't see how it could go on," the actress told Sunday Times. "I mean, I certainly can't keep going. To my knowledge, I must be 110 by now. We're into the late 1920s."
However, it was revealed that the actress is willing to be in the show until its end. But that is not as easy as it sounds as the cast has to deal with a contract that is reportedly expiring after season 6.
According to Carter Matt, the sixth season of "Downton Abbey" won't be out until fall this year. Production will last until summer.
