To say we're terrible, ghastly vagabonds and all actors are lazy, unreliable and drunk—I suppose Julian Fellowes simply hit the nail at the head!” jokes Hugh Bonneville. This tale carries spoilers for Downton Abbey: A New Era. Downton Abbey: A New Era, the brand new film sequel to the particularly famous duration drama, boasts a wedding, a birth, a loss of life, a risk to the own circle of relatives' bloodline—and of course, Dowager Violet Crawley (Dame Maggie Smith) firing off deadpan zingers. “Downton Abbey is simply virtually the present that continues on giving. I couldn`t trust we have been going to do a 2d film due to the fact it`s so that difficult to do,” stated Elizabeth McGovern, who performs Cora Crawley, on the movie`s U.S. top-rated on the New York Metropolitan Opera House on Sunday. “We`ve been doing it for this long, and to think about a concept that breathes a bit bit of recent strength without sacrificing the entirety that everyone loves approximately it—that may be a massive ask. But [creator and writer] Julian [Fellowes] virtually controlled to do that. The film virtually is funny, after which it packs an emotional punch.” The movie, out in theaters on May 20, starts off evolved with the dowager revealing that she has received a villa withinside the South of France after the loss of life of a mysterious guy from her past. To type out the inheritance, she sends her son Robert Crawley (Hugh Bonneville), his spouse Cora, her granddaughter Edith (Laura Carmichael), Edith`s husband Bertie (Harry Hadden-Paton), Tom Branson (Allen Leech)—who married into the Crawley own circle of relatives after years of being their chauffeur—his new spouse Lucy (Tuppence Middleton), and his mom-in-regulation Lady Bagshaw (Imelda Staunton) to fulfill the own circle of relatives and discover why they're giving up this villa. Meanwhile, Mary (Michelle Dockery) stays in the back to oversee a movie manufacturing business enterprise that arrives at Downton to make a silent movie—an association reluctantly normal via way of means of the own circle of relatives best to elevate cash to restore Downton`s leaking roof. The downstairs servants are pleased to fulfill Hollywood actors, whilst the upstairs own circle of relatives contributors strongly disdain the artwork of cinema. Robert calls actresses “plastered in makeup” and “actors simply plastered.” The dowager says she`d rather “devour pebbles” than watch a movie and provides, “The exceptional aspect approximately movies in which you can`t pay attention them.” “The top elegance didn`t virtually take to movie or tv for pretty a protracted time. They noticed it a form of as working-elegance entertainment,” stated Fellowes on the advent carpet previous to the screening. “It turned into their kids that took them into a movie, and I usually recall that from my very own parents. My father had stated he and my mom have been very eager on movies, however, his parents` technology has been now no longer at all. My father had persuaded his aunt to visit a movie with him and she or he genuinely determined it grotesque. That turned into the muse for why the Crawleys do now no longer like movies.” The film`s movie-within-a-movie plotline imitated existence at instances for the solid. Like the relaxation of Downton, the sequel turned into filmed at Highclere Castle, placed in Newbury, England. The proprietors of Highclere Castle, the 8th Earl, and Countess of Carnarvon, spread out their domestic to the Downton Abbey TV collection for 6 seasons. “We now recognize how Lord and Lady Carnarvon sense on every occasion Downton Abbey vehicles flip-up,” stated Bonneville. “It has become very meta.” McGovern additionally feels sorry for invading the Carnarvons` non-public space. “We`ve been an ache withinside the neck for the aristocratic own circle of relatives that absolutely do stay there. We`ve visited them all and that they genuinely hate us,” she stated in jest. “So it turned into a laugh to place that on its head and in reality take advantage of it for the movie. The aristocratic own circle of relatives isn't always on set with us. They make a hasty retreat. The best time that I ever noticed the aristocratic spouse turned into while George Clooney came, and she or he turned into very plenty around. Besides that, she`s off together with her dogs. It virtually is an invasion. I wouldn`t need a movie team in my house, so I understand.” The solid determined it particularly a laugh to disparage their real-existence career onscreen. “Robert reveals it despicable that a film is being made at Downton, and it turned into outstanding a laugh to mention such bad and bad things,” stated Bonneville. “To say we're terrible, ghastly vagabonds and all actors are lazy, unreliable, and drunk—I suppose Julian Fellowes simply hit the nail at the head! No, it turned into only a delight.” Joanne Froggatt, who performs Lady`s maid, Anna Bates, relished withinside the scenes wherein the dowager is launching a move of caustic insults and witty comments approximately making movies. “Maggie`s traces are mainly nicely pitched due to the fact she`s very essential and speaking down on actors and filmmaking—however, she`s an iconic actress and double Oscar winner. So to pay attention her say the ones insult virtually provides to the laugh of it.” In addition to the meta, movie-within-a-movie narrative, A New Era worries about a protracted-awaited marriage idea among like man or woman Mr. Molesley (Kevin Doyle) and Miss Baxter (Raquel Cassidy). “I concept it turned into a fantastically timed second, absolutely, due to the fact I recognize humans have desired that for pretty a few time. And we have been privy to that,” stated Doyle. “It turned into adorable that it took so long, due to the fact they're very cautious humans. They didn`t need to harm one another, and it turned into fantastically positioned and fantastically written.” “I turned into pleased, absolutely, for the fans,” delivered Cassidy. “Julian virtually stored dangling their courting in the front of them. In unique on the