Television » The sixth season will be the last, and Lady Mary and Lady Edith are still squabbling.
________________________________________________________________________
Six years ago, "Downton Abbey" executive producer Gareth Neame was pretty sure the series was going to fail.
He recalled the day the cast gathered for a table read of the first episode. Specifically, two actors who opened the series playing characters who received a telegram about the sinking of Titanic.
"They only had four lines … so they read them really slowly," Neame said. "And I thought — God, this is going on. It's so boring."
"You thought this is never going to work," added Elizabeth McGovern, who stars as Lady Cora. And McGovern came away convinced that "Something happened in that reading. … On that day, I knew that it was going to be something special."
She was right. Not only did "Downton Abbey" become a hit in Great Britain and the U.S. and the highest-rated drama in the history of PBS, it's an international success, seen in more than 250 countries and territories worldwide.
Heck, when British prime minister David Cameron visited China in 2014, he gave Chinese premier Le Kequiang an autographed "Downton Abbey" script.
There are a lot of obsessed fans out there, as sometimes becomes too clear to cast members.
"I had a very naked lady in the gym changing room having a very in-depth conversation with me about my character, which was quite awkward," said Joanne Froggatt, who stars as Anna. "She was in the middle of drying herself in a very intimate place at the time. Yeah, that was a strange experience.
"I wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. But she really enjoyed the show."
That "Downton Abbey" became such a sensation is more than anyone expected of this series about British aristocracy and their servants from 1912 through 1925, which is when the narrative for the sixth and final season begins.
"When we started working with the 'Downton' team, it was anticipated that if it was successful, it would run for three seasons," said PBS president Paula Kerger.
"Nobody goes into a TV show really expecting to still be there six years later," Neame said.
As Season 6 begins Sunday, Jan. 3 (8 p.m., PBS/Ch. 7), there's still a lot going on. There's a battle over the future of the local hospital, pitting Lady Cora against her mother-in-law, the Dowager Countess Violet (Maggie Smith). A legal cloud still hangs over Anna (Joanne Froggatt) and Mr. Bates (Brendan Coyle).
Thomas (Rob James-Collier) is causing more trouble. Mr. Carson (Jim Carter) and Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan) might be getting married, if there aren't too many of those "Downton Abbey" complications.
Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) is taking on even more responsibility on the estate, and she's fending off a blackmailer. Lady Edith (Laura Carmichael) gets caught up in running the magazine left to her by Michael Gregson.
And Mary and Edith are still not-so-friendly antagonists throughout.
"I think you know your sister more than you know anyone else, in a weird way," Carmichael said. "And I think you know where to stick the knife in."
"We love playing those scenes," said Dockery.
Readmore
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar