“With that I’ll say goodnight,†Maggie Smith’s magnificent Dowager Countess teases in the trailer for Downton Abbey: A New Era, “and leave you to discuss my mysterious past.†We’re not sure what year it is across the pond, but the Crawleys have found themselves at the intersection of two story lines in A New Era as they continue to adapt to the modern world: A Hollywood producer wants to film a “moving picture†(gasp) at Downton, to a mixed reaction, while the Dowager inherits a Riviera villa seemingly out of nowhere. (“Do I look like I would turn down a villa in the south of France?†she snaps.) Of course, there’s a secret about her relationship with the villa’s history, but we’re just happy she’s alive and a quote machine again. Still … we’ll bet on a secret family. The film premieres in theaters on May 20.
Maggie Smith Is Alive and Inheriting Villas in Downton Abbey: A New Era Trailer
