Paul Giamatti Teases Major Role in ‘Downton Abbey’ Film Finale: “I Do Something of Real Significance” (Exclusive)

Paul Giamatti Teases Major Role in ‘Downton Abbey’ Film Finale: “I Do Something of Real Significance” (Exclusive)

Paul Giamatti is returning to Downton Abbey for its highly anticipated third and final movie, and the Oscar-nominated actor is promising a major impact on the story.

Although Giamatti’s initial role as Harold Levinson, the brother of Cora Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern), was brief in season 4 of the TV series, his return in the upcoming film will mark a significant moment for the franchise. In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor revealed that his character will play a crucial role in the film’s conclusion.

“I was surprised to return at all,” Giamatti, 57, confessed. “I had a pretty minor character, and someone thought it was a good idea to make me very important in this movie.” He continued, sharing that Levinson’s involvement in the final film will be “momentous for a lot of reasons”—though he’s careful not to spoil too much.

“I do something quite important in this movie,” Giamatti teased with a smile. “I was like, wow, this is random! I have a lot to do with the end of this whole series. I do something of real significance—good or bad, I’m not going to say! But I do something that makes a big difference in how everything ends.”

The final Downton Abbey film is set to close out the beloved saga, which began in 2010, and will bring the story of the Crawley family and their servants to a dramatic close. The film will be released on September 12.

The Downton Abbey franchise, created by Julian Fellowes, began with the original TV series, which aired from 2010 to 2015 on ITV in the UK and PBS in the US. It followed the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their staff at the grand Yorkshire estate. Since the TV series ended, two films have been released—Downton Abbey in 2019 and its sequel Downton Abbey: A New Era in 2022.

Giamatti’s return is just one of many familiar faces in the final movie. Other stars returning for the third installment include Elizabeth McGovern, Michelle Dockery, Dominic West, Hugh Bonneville, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Phyllis Logan, Robert James-Collier, Joanne Froggatt, Allen Leech, Penelope Wilton, Lesley Nicol, Michael Fox, Raquel Cassidy, Brendan Coyle, Kevin Doyle, Harry Hadden-Paton, Sophie McShera, and Douglas Reith.

In addition to his role in Downton Abbey, Giamatti will next appear in the upcoming seventh season of Netflix’s Black Mirror, which premieres on April 10.

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