Downton Abbey stars seem to have taken up a criminal’s life. A lot of our favourite actors will next be seen in crime thillers after Sunday’s series finale as we bid the beautiful estate, it’s masters and also the servants goodbye.
Joanne Froggatt, the TV drama’s vulnerable Anna Bates, is morphing into a 19th-century serial killer in PBS’ Dark Angel. Michelle Dockery, who plays coolly elegant Lady Mary, is a sleazy American ex-convict in TNT’s Good Behavior. And Kevin Doyle, the good-hearted Mr Molesley, is a bad-hearted police detective in Netflix’s Happy Valley.
The end of Downton Abbey on PBS’ Masterpiece after six seasons means new career paths for its stars, with both the upstairs and downstairs crew embracing change-of-pace roles – although devoted viewers may want to enshrine them forever as their beloved characters.
“Anybody who’s watched and loved Downton is going to remember these characters for the rest of their lives,” said executive producer Gareth Neame. But cast members “can’t put a pin in their career and say that’s it.”
British actors are especially keen on variety and like “to move away from things they’ve been previously successful with,” Neame said.
Froggatt said change is part of acting’s allure. “After playing a role that you’ve loved playing for years, there is a certain part of you that goes, ‘I fancy doing something a bit different,” she said.
