‘Downton Abbey: A New Era’: Fans Spot Key Character Is Missing From Trailer (VIDEO)

Downton Abbey New Era Teaser
Focus Features/YouTube

The first trailer is here for Downton Abbey: A New Era, the sequel to the series’ 2019 big-screen debut, but one character is suspiciously absent, and fans have noticed.

Focus Features released the teaser on Wednesday, November 10, and it sees the Crawleys up to their usual lavish hijinxes, with Hugh Bonneville‘s Robert and Laura Carmichael‘s Edith spotted amongst the ensemble. However, as some viewers pointed out, there is no sign of Matthew Goode, who plays Lady Mary’s (Michelle Dockery) husband, Henry Talbot.

“They had to persuade Matthew Goode to join #DowntonAbbey and that should have been a hint he wasn’t interested,” tweeted one fan. “We’re guessing he’ll have as small a role in the upcoming movie as he did the last one. Here he appears to be missing his business partner’s wedding.”

“Had hoped Matthew Goode would be (properly) in this one, but guess he ain’t!” commented another.

As pointed out by some of the commenters, Goode is listed in the cast for the upcoming sequel, though fans are tempering expectations for the size of his role. If it’s anything like the first movie, expect Goode to only appear in a very small part.

Speaking about the first film in 2018, Goode previously told This Morning that the story would focus on new characters. “It’s a very brilliant new story, the cast has got bigger, I won’t tell you who’s in it. But there’s a lot of great new faces,” he said while admitting that he was “not [in it] a huge amount.”

Downton Abbey ran from 2010 to 2015 on PBS before the first film’s release in 2019. The series, created by Julian Fellowes, is set in the early 20th century and follows the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their domestic servants in the post-Edwardian era.

Simon Curtis (My Week with Marilyn) is set to direct the upcoming film, which will feature new cast members Hugh Dancy, Dominic West, Laura Haddock, and Nathalie Baye, alongside returning regulars, including Bonneville, Carmichael, Dockery, Elizabeth McGovern, Jim Carter, and Joanne Froggatt.

Downton Abbey: A New Era, Movie Premiere, March 18, 2022, Theaters