The Crawley family were in attendance at CinemaCon this week to present the first footage from Downton Abbey. And this time around, they’re faced with the highest honor: welcoming the King and Queen to Grantham estate.
Per Deadline, it’s now been confirmed that the movie, itself based on the wildly popular ITV period drama, sees Dame Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery and Hugh Bonneville scrambling to prepare for the royal visit. As if that wasn’t stressful enough, they’ve been left with no maid and no nanny – there isn’t even a valet! – so prepare for high stakes and high drama when the Downton Abbey movie opens worldwide this September.
And to whet your appetite, here’s a little description of the soon-to-be-released trailer, courtesy of Deadline:
The trailer starts off with some familiar things Downton fans will immediately warm to: The kitchen bells, clock-winding, table setting and the long drive up to the house. The first glimpse we get of the family is when Hugh Bonneville’s Lord Grantham exclaims, “No maid, no nanny and no valet even!,” as Laura Carmichael’s Lady Edith arrives with husband Bertie.
It’s unclear as yet whether Focus Features will release this exact reel of footage to the world; anything shown at CinemaCon tends to be exclusive. Nevertheless, with a theatrical release right around the corner, it won’t be much longer before the Powers That Be begin dusting down the marketing machine.
Promising “old dramas, new passions and old loves,” the Downton Abbey feature film has made room in its ensemble cast for Smith, Dockery and Bonneville, along with a host of supporting players including Imelda Staunton, Geraldine James, Tuppence Middleton, Simon Jones, David Haig, Kate Phillips and Stephen Campbell Moore.
International rollout of the Downton Abbey movie begins officially on September 12th, when the United Kingdom will play host to Brian Percival’s starry feature film. Expect the Crawley family to grace these shores on September 20th.