5 Ways a ‘Gilded Age’ & ‘Downton Abbey’ Crossover Could Actually Happen

With its close-enough timelines and the fact that they’re both created by Julian Fellowes, the idea of a Gilded Age and Downton Abbey crossover is not a far-off concept. Fans have joked about the possibility on social media throughout The Gilded Age‘s three seasons. The hypothetical crossover’s biggest roadblock is the fact that the shows are produced by different companies on different networks, bringing copyright issues into play. While it may be a fool’s errand to imagine how these worlds could collide, it’s still fun to do nonetheless. We even asked Fellowes about it ahead of The Gilded Age Season 3 premiere earlier this year.

Let’s put aside the “can they do it” question for a moment and focus on the how. From where we’re standing, there are a handful of characters that leave the door open for a Gilded Age and Downton Abbey crossover. Here are five ways we think a crossover could actually happen. (The Gilded Age Season 3 finale comes out this Sunday, August 10, on HBO. Get an exclusive look into the high-stakes episode here.)

1. Young Cora Crawley Appears

Elizabeth McGovern‘s character from Downton Abbey is an American heiress who married into a British family to keep the Crawley estate funded and elevate her station. Like Gladys Russell (Taissa Farmiga), Cora Crawley (née Levinson) was a Dollar Princess, and her family history makes her the crossover’s best chance.

Cora was born in 1868 in Ohio, making her slightly younger than Gladys. In 1883, Cora is 15 years old and Gladys is 18. Cora’s family had homes in New York and Newport, Rhode Island, The Gilded Age‘s most-frequented locations. In 1888, Cora’s mother, Martha Levinson (Shirley MacLaine), brought her to England with the intent to find an English noble for Cora to marry. Their plan was a success. Cora married Robert Crawley (Hugh Bonneville) in 1890.

Introducing a young Cora Levinson into Manhattan society would be the easiest way to bring the worlds of these shows together, and it would be a treat for Downton Abbey fans who would delight in seeing a younger version of not only Cora, but also her firecracker of a mother. Cora could also show up in England, if a future season of The Gilded Age is set in 1888 or after. But the HBO period drama takes its time with the plot. Seasons 1 and 2 are set in 1882, Season 3 in 1883. At that pace, it would require either a time jump in Season 4 or beyond, or many more seasons. All of these things are possible, of course, just not guaranteed.

2. Gladys Russell Welcomes Noble Visitors

This one’s easy, too. Gladys lives in England now. Bring over some 1880s Crawleys to meet the new duchess! Gladys’ plot at Sidmouth Castle already echoes Downton Abbey, with her getting to know the lay of the land and how to run an estate and keep it running.

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The fictional Sidmouth and Downton estates are far away geographically. Downton is in Yorkshire in the north of England, while Sidmouth is in the south east. But it wouldn’t take rocket science to concoct a reason for a young Robert, Earl of Grantham, or anyone in his family (especially his iconic mother, Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham) to come and meet England’s new duchess, especially given that marrying a Dollar Princess was already a possibility for Robert at that time. Gladys’ story could pique his curiosity.

3. Violet Crawley Goes to London

Speaking of Violet, we’d want to see a young version of Maggie Smith‘s legendary character more than anyone else from Downton, especially now that the character (and sadly, Smith herself) has passed away. While many of her disdainful words for America  littered throughout the PBS Masterpiece drama imply that she never visited America, Violet could appear in the England storyline just as easily as son Robert, if not more easily. Her younger counterpart could perhaps be a friend of Lady Sarah (Hattie Morahan), Gladys’ controlling sister-in-law, who spends considerable time in London every year.

Make Violet Crawley show up in London to spar with a visiting Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon), and Fellowes will have my good will forever. While Agnes Van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) visiting England seems as likely as Violet saying a kind word about Americans, I would give my life savings to see Agnes and Violet in the same room spewing deliciously petty Fellowes dialogue. It would be a battle of wits for the ages.

4. Jack Trotter Sees the World

Former footman John (nicknamed Jack by his work family, played by Ben Ahlers) can see the world now that he’s a millionaire. The up-and-coming inventor and entrepreneur could take some business dealings abroad with new friend and collaborator Larry Russell (Harry Richardson), and that business could cause any manner of chance meetings with a Downton character. It would be especially sweet to have Jack as a connection to seeing younger versions of the downstairs staff from Downton, such as Mr. Carson (Jim Carter), who like Jack started working at the Downton estate as a teenager.

5. The Titanic Sinks

Bleak! But a hilariously dark joke of a theory posed by fans on social media. If you haven’t realized already, there are families in The Gilded Age that will suffer tragedy in 1912 when the Titanic sinks. The real Mrs. Astor (played by Donna Murphy in the show), for example, died in 1908. Her son, John Jacob Astor IV, died in the disaster in 1912. Two of Mrs. Astor’s children (Carrie and Charlotte) have already been introduced as characters in The Gilded Age.

The Vanderbilts, on whom the Russell family is loosely based, just barely avoided the same tragedy. George Washington Vanderbilt II and his wife, Edith, had tickets for that doomed voyage but canceled at the last minute. They booked passage on another ship that got them to New York just a few days before the Titanic sank. Their servant, Edwin Wheeler, was on board with their belongings and died in the sinking.

I need the show to run for 8 seasons and culminate with the titanic sinking. The finale will end with the opening scene from Downton Abbey. https://t.co/RXzXyYPKWX

— Rose Dommu (@rosedommu) December 22, 2023

The very first episode of Downton Abbey opens with the news of the Titanic sinking, and two Crawley family members were on board and perished. If The Gilded Age runs long enough to reach the year 1912, the shows’ plots could intertwine through this. But it seems far from likely that this would happen, not only because that’s a 29-year gap between the plot of Season 3 and the start of Downton Abbey, but also because that would just be an uncharacteristically dark place to take the glitzy HBO show.

Then again, Downton Abbey had just as much glamour and it opened with that gloom, and The Gilded Age has gotten much more dangerous in Season 3. Maybe we should be more concerned about this.

The Gilded Age, Season 3 Finale, Sunday, August 10, 9/8c, HBO