Downton Abbey 3 to be released much sooner than fans expected

Third and final spin-off film based on the much-loved costume drama is currently being filmed

Downton Abbey fans won’t have too long to wait before the third and final film arrives in cinemas.

Universal Pictures UK has confirmed that the last spin-off movie, featuring the characters from Julian Fellowes’ hit ITV period drama, will make its debut on 12 September, 2025.

The news was revealed in a post shared on the studio’s official Instagram account, referring to the film simply as Downton Abbey 3, before a title is confirmed.

The third movie was announced back in May following extensive speculation, along with the news that long-standing cast members would be returning for Downton’s last hurrah.

Hugh Bonneville will reprise his role as Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham, alongside Elizabeth McGovern, who stars as his on-screen wife Lady Cora, and Michelle Dockery and Laura Carmichael, who play the Crawleys’ daughters Lady Mary and Lady Edith.

Other returning stars include Jim Carter, Phyllis Logan, Robert James-Collier and Joanne Froggatt, Allen Leech, Penelope Wilton and Brendan Coyle.

They will be joined by Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti, who previously appeared in the show’s 2013 Christmas special as Cora’s brother, along with Joely Richardson, Alessandro Nivola, Simon Russell Beale and Arty Froushan.

Dockery shared her excitement at reuniting with her castmates in a video shared to mark the announcement.

“It feels amazing and emotional,” she said. “It’s wonderful all to be back together again. You come back together and you feel like no time has passed at all.”

The movie will be written by series creator Julian Fellowes and will be directed by Simon Curtis, who previously helmed Downton Abbey: A New Era.

Filming began at Highclere Castle last month. The Grade I listed stately home in Hampshire has stood in on screen for the titular Abbey, the Crawley family’s home, since the very first series of the show, which aired in 2010.

The estate is owned by Lord and Lady Carnarvon, and has become a favourite tourist destination for devoted fans of the costume drama.

Downton Abbey ran for six seasons on ITV, airing from 2010 to 2015. The first spin-off film was released in 2019, followed by A New Era in 2022.