NEW YORK (AP) – A grand manor will close its doors to its millions of weekly guests after “Downton Abbey” concludes next year.
Producers of the popular British period drama on Thursday confirmed the saga will end after its sixth season, scheduled to air in the United States in early 2016. The finale will air earlier in England – on Christmas Day, 2015.
“Our feeling is that it’s good to quit while you’re ahead,” executive producer Gareth Neame said during a conference call. “We feel the show is in incredibly strong shape, the scripts that we’re working on for the upcoming season are fantastic, and the show is so popular globally. But the danger with this sort of thing is to let it go on forever.”
He said the decision to wrap was made by him and Julian Fellowes (who created the series and has written every episode) in conjunction with the cast.
Asked about a rumored “Downton Abbey” feature film, Neame said, “It would be great fun to do,” but added there so far are no plans in place, nor are there plans for a series spinoff.