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The Guardian
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘I knew my job was to fulfil a man's fantasy': Elizabeth McGovern on Downton, early fame and co-starring with Brad Pitt
For the maudlin among us, the final Downton Abbey film should perhaps come with a warning. Everything in it is tinged with wistfulness – a goodbye to cherished characters and a farewell to a stately home that was a sturdy presence in a transient world. When the ITV series started in 2010, wasn't life … better? Did Elizabeth McGovern feel this too, the sense of time passing? After all, her character, Cora, is now ageing out of custodianship of Downton along with her husband, Lord Grantham, in favour of a younger generation and a changing era as the 1930s dawn. 'No!' says McGovern, snapping me out of my melancholy. 'I feel very excited that I'm going into a gratifying new phase in my career.' As well as reviving Cora, there is the play she has written, Ava: The Secret Conversations. Starring McGovern as Hollywood actor Ava Gardner, it will run in New York, Chicago and Toronto, having made its debut in London in 2022. There is also a new album of her folk-inspired music. 'I feel like I'm just beginning,' she declares as we meet at her publicist's London office. At first glance, McGovern, fine-boned and composed, seems delicate – but if you only go on first impressions, you'll miss her rebellious spirit. Not that making Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale wasn't emotional. 'You don't have to work very hard, as a film-maker, to touch on that depth, because we've been working on it for so many years,' she says. McGovern worried that the absence of Maggie Smith – who died last year after giving the show the brilliantly scathing Dowager Countess – would feel like too big a loss to the Downton world. But she says Smith's presence 'permeates' it. 'She's still very much in the atmosphere. I don't feel there's a big hole. In fact, in some ways, it sort of freed up the rest of the narrative to have a flow, because it's not stopping for her moments. But everything she represents is there. She's in every room, in every interaction, so it's not like she's not there. It's a weird thing.' The women of Downton, whether the steely Lady Mary or spirited young cook Daisy, are gratifyingly tough, but Cora, usually quietly supportive in the background, never seemed that robust, even though it was her money – as an American heiress – that was running everything. Was that difficult to play? 'At times, yes,' says McGovern. 'I think as a contemporary woman, it is hard to feel the straitjacket of that period.' Did she ever fight for Cora to have more agency? 'I wish at times she could have had more interesting stories,' says McGovern, but adds that it wouldn't have been appropriate for her to have had 'any more political or social power, because it just wouldn't be accurate to the time'. Cora, though, is a vision of an exciting America; the daughter of a Jewish immigrant installed at Downton with her bags of new money and her progressive outlook. Were Downton set now, instead of Cora coming here to shake up Britain's class-ridden ways, she would be a wealthy liberal refugee, a bit like Ellen DeGeneres, fleeing Trump's America. McGovern, who grew up in California, has lived in the UK for the past 32 years. She is shocked and disappointed at modern US politics. 'I mean,' she says, 'it's a reality that must have been bubbling away under what I thought was America. It can't have come from nowhere.' But, describing herself as a positive person, she adds: 'I think it will be painful, but we have too much successful history as a free country for us to let it go. It's all of our responsibility to peacefully make sure we hold on to everything that I was confident – and complacent about – that America represented.' McGovern had huge success early on. Her debut was in Robert Redford's 1980 film Ordinary People, and she won an Oscar nomination for her role in her second film, Ragtime. This was followed by a part in Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in America, opposite Robert de Niro. 'I think I did feel like, 'Gosh, this isn't as hard as people say.'' She smiles. 'Until I later experienced how difficult it is. My experience early on was just trying to keep my head on straight, do job after job, and do what most people are doing at that age – try to grow up. I only realised later how difficult it is to sustain a career.' Hers wasn't a showbiz family: her parents were teachers. And although she has loved acting since she was a child, it was never about becoming a star. As a young woman in an often dangerous industry, this probably protected her. 'I was never desperate, so I could always just walk away. A lot of young women didn't feel they could. I think I was very lucky.' It also made her see the downsides of fame. 'I think I did manage to avoid it myself, but the price you pay for fame is that it becomes really hard to have any relationships of intimacy, because you are collateral. Your whole being has sort of been sold, and that creates a tension about what people want from you.' A lot of McGovern's early roles were as the girlfriend to the male lead. Then, she says: 'I went from being the girlfriend to the perfect wife, and that I found frustrating. Most movies, television – it's always the man's point of view. It's such a deep, subliminal thing that audiences are not even aware of it. I wasn't even particularly aware of it. I knew my job early on was to fulfil a man's fantasy of the woman they wanted. It never occurred to me to even question it.' Brad Pitt played McGovern's boyfriend in the 1994 comedy The Favor. We joke – bitterly – that were she to be in a film with him now, she would probably be cast as his mother. This says a lot about what's still considered desirable in a woman even though, at 64, McGovern is only three years Pitt's senior. 'I really don't think that, just because society is viewing something that way, we have to. I try to have this discussion with my daughters. We can have a feeling independent of the consensus in society. I've just done my own thing and just kept doing it.' She bristles, not unreasonably, when I point out that her embracing her silver hair seems rare in her business. Was that a political decision? 'Not really. But once again, I feel like a woman my age – that's what we're asked to talk about. I regret that about society.' There is something bracing about the way McGovern carves her own path. She left Hollywood and moved to London to start a family; she has two grownup daughters with her husband, the film-maker and producer Simon Curtis (who directed The Grand Finale). Approaching her 40s, she started a band, Sadie and the Hotheads, and started releasing music. 'I have to remind myself,' she says, 'that people will either like it or they won't – and whatever they feel is fine with me. It's about doing it.' In her 50s, she wrote her play about Gardner, drawn to the actor's independent spirit. Now in her 60s, she is writing a screenplay, although she won't say what it's about. 'It's my next obsession. I really want to write stuff. I'm really excited about that.' Doing so is partly a way to create interesting work for herself as an older actor. There has certainly been plenty of talk about this – does she think the situation has improved? 'Not that I've noticed.' She loved the recent show Dying for Sex, in which Michelle Williams plays a terminally ill woman in her 40s who embarks on a last attempt at sexual exploration. 'It's such a female story. I found that to be really encouraging, but it's not going to be about someone my age.' Why? Is it because society considers the thought of older women having a sex life shocking? 'I think possibly, yes. I mean, what can we do as women, except just keep going and not buy into it? We have no other choice.' If it takes a bit of effort, the pay-off is surely worth it – if McGovern and her outlook are anything to go by. 'It's a daily exercise in getting your head tuned into the right thing. It's not that I blame anyone for accepting the status quo, but it doesn't mean I have to. No way.' She laughs. 'No way.' Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is out on 11 September in Australia, and 12 September in the UK and US. Ava: The Secret Conversations is at New York City Center until 14 September.
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘I knew my job was to fulfil a man's fantasy': Elizabeth McGovern on Downton, early fame and co-starring with Brad Pitt
For the maudlin among us, the final Downton Abbey film should perhaps come with a warning. Everything in it is tinged with wistfulness – a goodbye to cherished characters and a farewell to a stately home that was a sturdy presence in a transient world. When the ITV series started in 2010, wasn't life … better? Did Elizabeth McGovern feel this too, the sense of time passing? After all, her character, Cora, is now ageing out of custodianship of Downton along with her husband, Lord Grantham, in favour of a younger generation and a changing era as the 1930s dawn. 'No!' says McGovern, snapping me out of my melancholy. 'I feel very excited that I'm going into a gratifying new phase in my career.' As well as reviving Cora, there is the play she has written, Ava: The Secret Conversations. Starring McGovern as Hollywood actor Ava Gardner, it will run in New York, Chicago and Toronto, having made its debut in London in 2022. There is also a new album of her folk-inspired music. 'I feel like I'm just beginning,' she declares as we meet at her publicist's London office. At first glance, McGovern, fine-boned and composed, seems delicate – but if you only go on first impressions, you'll miss her rebellious spirit. Not that making Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale wasn't emotional. 'You don't have to work very hard, as a film-maker, to touch on that depth, because we've been working on it for so many years,' she says. McGovern worried that the absence of Maggie Smith – who died last year after giving the show the brilliantly scathing Dowager Countess – would feel like too big a loss to the Downton world. But she says Smith's presence 'permeates' it. 'She's still very much in the atmosphere. I don't feel there's a big hole. In fact, in some ways, it sort of freed up the rest of the narrative to have a flow, because it's not stopping for her moments. But everything she represents is there. She's in every room, in every interaction, so it's not like she's not there. It's a weird thing.' The women of Downton, whether the steely Lady Mary or spirited young cook Daisy, are gratifyingly tough, but Cora, usually quietly supportive in the background, never seemed that robust, even though it was her money – as an American heiress – that was running everything. Was that difficult to play? 'At times, yes,' says McGovern. 'I think as a contemporary woman, it is hard to feel the straitjacket of that period.' Did she ever fight for Cora to have more agency? 'I wish at times she could have had more interesting stories,' says McGovern, but adds that it wouldn't have been appropriate for her to have had 'any more political or social power, because it just wouldn't be accurate to the time'. Cora, though, is a vision of an exciting America; the daughter of a Jewish immigrant installed at Downton with her bags of new money and her progressive outlook. Were Downton set now, instead of Cora coming here to shake up Britain's class-ridden ways, she would be a wealthy liberal refugee, a bit like Ellen DeGeneres, fleeing Trump's America. McGovern, who grew up in California, has lived in the UK for the past 32 years. She is shocked and disappointed at modern US politics. 'I mean,' she says, 'it's a reality that must have been bubbling away under what I thought was America. It can't have come from nowhere.' But, describing herself as a positive person, she adds: 'I think it will be painful, but we have too much successful history as a free country for us to let it go. It's all of our responsibility to peacefully make sure we hold on to everything that I was confident – and complacent about – that America represented.' McGovern had huge success early on. Her debut was in Robert Redford's 1980 film Ordinary People, and she won an Oscar nomination for her role in her second film, Ragtime. This was followed by a part in Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in America, opposite Robert de Niro. 'I think I did feel like, 'Gosh, this isn't as hard as people say.'' She smiles. 'Until I later experienced how difficult it is. My experience early on was just trying to keep my head on straight, do job after job, and do what most people are doing at that age – try to grow up. I only realised later how difficult it is to sustain a career.' Hers wasn't a showbiz family: her parents were teachers. And although she has loved acting since she was a child, it was never about becoming a star. As a young woman in an often dangerous industry, this probably protected her. 'I was never desperate, so I could always just walk away. A lot of young women didn't feel they could. I think I was very lucky.' It also made her see the downsides of fame. 'I think I did manage to avoid it myself, but the price you pay for fame is that it becomes really hard to have any relationships of intimacy, because you are collateral. Your whole being has sort of been sold, and that creates a tension about what people want from you.' A lot of McGovern's early roles were as the girlfriend to the male lead. Then, she says: 'I went from being the girlfriend to the perfect wife, and that I found frustrating. Most movies, television – it's always the man's point of view. It's such a deep, subliminal thing that audiences are not even aware of it. I wasn't even particularly aware of it. I knew my job early on was to fulfil a man's fantasy of the woman they wanted. It never occurred to me to even question it.' Brad Pitt played McGovern's boyfriend in the 1994 comedy The Favor. We joke – bitterly – that were she to be in a film with him now, she would probably be cast as his mother. This says a lot about what's still considered desirable in a woman even though, at 64, McGovern is only three years Pitt's senior. 'I really don't think that, just because society is viewing something that way, we have to. I try to have this discussion with my daughters. We can have a feeling independent of the consensus in society. I've just done my own thing and just kept doing it.' She bristles, not unreasonably, when I point out that her embracing her silver hair seems rare in her business. Was that a political decision? 'Not really. But once again, I feel like a woman my age – that's what we're asked to talk about. I regret that about society.' There is something bracing about the way McGovern carves her own path. She left Hollywood and moved to London to start a family; she has two grownup daughters with her husband, the film-maker and producer Simon Curtis (who directed The Grand Finale). Approaching her 40s, she started a band, Sadie and the Hotheads, and started releasing music. 'I have to remind myself,' she says, 'that people will either like it or they won't – and whatever they feel is fine with me. It's about doing it.' In her 50s, she wrote her play about Gardner, drawn to the actor's independent spirit. Now in her 60s, she is writing a screenplay, although she won't say what it's about. 'It's my next obsession. I really want to write stuff. I'm really excited about that.' Doing so is partly a way to create interesting work for herself as an older actor. There has certainly been plenty of talk about this – does she think the situation has improved? 'Not that I've noticed.' She loved the recent show Dying for Sex, in which Michelle Williams plays a terminally ill woman in her 40s who embarks on a last attempt at sexual exploration. 'It's such a female story. I found that to be really encouraging, but it's not going to be about someone my age.' Why? Is it because society considers the thought of older women having a sex life shocking? 'I think possibly, yes. I mean, what can we do as women, except just keep going and not buy into it? We have no other choice.' If it takes a bit of effort, the pay-off is surely worth it – if McGovern and her outlook are anything to go by. 'It's a daily exercise in getting your head tuned into the right thing. It's not that I blame anyone for accepting the status quo, but it doesn't mean I have to. No way.' She laughs. 'No way.' Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is out on 11 September in Australia, and 12 September in the UK and US. Ava: The Secret Conversations is at New York City Center until 14 September.
Edinburgh Live
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Live
ITV Downton Abbey cast now - tragic deaths, off-screen romances and rise to fame
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Since its debut in 2010, the ITV drama Downton Abbey has captured the hearts of television enthusiasts, and it's no surprise that viewers are clamouring for more. The British series, set between 1912 and 1926, revolves around the fictional Yorkshire country estate of Downton Abbey, chronicling the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and their domestic staff. Featuring a cast of beloved TV actors, the show delves into several pivotal historical events, including the First World War, the Spanish flu pandemic, the Irish War of Independence, and the decline of the British aristocracy. Downton Abbey garnered worldwide praise, winning over audiences and critics alike, and receiving numerous award nominations, such as Golden Globes and Primetime Emmy Awards. After its conclusion in 2015, the show's extraordinary success led to the production of two feature films in 2019 and 2022, with a third one anticipated to premiere in 2025. Considering the extensive cast, it's hardly shocking that many have gone on to achieve significant success on TV or have emerged as rising stars in the realm of television and film, according to the Express. Let's take a look at what the Downton Abbey cast is doing now, reports the Liverpool Echo. Hugh Bonneville - Robert Crawley, Lord Grantham. (Image: Ian West/PA Wire) Lord Grantham, the head of the Crawley family, was profoundly attached to his ancestral home at Downton and was dedicated to preserving the estate for future generations. Bonneville's performance in Downton Abbey was widely acclaimed, earning him two Emmy nominations and recognition from the Golden Globes. Post-Downton, Bonneville has remained a fixture on British television, while also making waves in Hollywood with roles such as Henry Brown in the Paddington films, Muppets Most Wanted and Bank of Dave. He recently starred in The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin, Douglas Is Cancelled and the BBC drama The Gold. Laura Carmichael - Lady Edith Crawley. (Image: Matt Crossick/PA Wire) The empathetic Edith had no desire for marriage but was keen to carve out her own career in journalism. She experienced her fair share of heartbreak - being left at the altar by Sir Anthony Strallan and losing her second fiancé Michael Gregson. Post-Downton, Laura Carmichael returned to film where her character had two children and ran a publishing business. Beyond Downton, Laura has appeared in dramas like Marcella, The Spanish Princess and The Secrets She Keeps. Off-screen, Carmichael is in a relationship with her Downton Abbey co-star Michael C. Fox, and they have a son together. Michelle Dockery - Lady Mary Josephine Talbot. (Image: Ian West/PA Wire) (Image: Gareth Cattermole/for Focus Features) Initially, Lady Mary was a petulant and cold young woman, but as the series progressed, she displayed more vulnerability and kindness. Tragically, she lost her husband Matthew following the birth of their son, and later married racing driver Henry. Since her time on Downton, Dockery has taken up roles in Anatomy of a Scandal, This Town, Godless, Good Behaviour and the films The Gentlemen and Here. She is currently married to Jasper Waller-Bridge, brother of Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge. The Dowager Countess of Grantham, known for her sharp wit despite her age, was a key character in Downton Abbey, appearing until the second film. Dame Maggie Smith - Violet Crawley. Already a well-established actress through her role as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter series and her two Oscar wins for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and California Suite, Dame Maggie Smith played Violet Crawley. In her later years, she was honoured in the documentary Nothing Like a Dame alongside Judi Dench, Eileen Atkins and Joan Plowright. Her recent works include A Boy Called Christmas and The Miracle Club. Sadly, the beloved actress passed away at 89 in September last year. Jessica Brown Findlay - Lady Sybil Crawley. Brown Findlay was cast as Lady Sybil Crawley, the youngest and most progressive of the Grantham daughters. She is the family's most politically active member and strongly advocates for treating Downton's staff as equals. Fans will remember Sybil's romance with the family's chauffeur, Thomas Branson, and its tragic conclusion. Since her time on Downton, Jessica has graced our screens in a variety of TV shows including BBC One's Jamaica Inn, The Outcast, Harlots, and Netflix's Castlevania. She is also set to star in ITVX's drama Playing Nice and Mother Mary in an upcoming period piece. Her other roles include Elizabeth in The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Linder Sterling in England Is Mine and Munich: The Edge of War. Dan Stevens played the role of Matthew Reginald Crawley, a middle-class distant relative of the Crawleys who became the heir to the estate in the first episode and subsequently moved to Downton. He was paralysed from the waist down during the First World War but recovered and married Lady Mary. Tragically, he died in a car accident while driving home from the hospital, leaving his share of Downton to Mary. Dan has since built a successful career in film and TV, with roles in Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, FX series Legion, animated series Solar Opposites and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Elizabeth McGovern portrayed Cora Crawley, known as the Countess of Grantham. She was the wealthy American heiress who helped save Downton. Compassionate Cora opened up Downton to soldiers during the First World War and served on the hospital board. The American actress reprised her role for the Downton Abbey films and also appeared in the film The Chaperone. McGovern has also pursued her musical interests with band Sadie and the Hotheads. McGovern is wedded to British film director and producer Simon Curtis, who helmed the 2022 film and its yet-to-be-named sequel slated for a 2025 release. Lily James portrayed Lady Rose Aldridge/MacClare. Audiences witnessed Lady Rose frequently butting heads with others and maintaining a strained relationship with her mother. As the series unfolded, Rose grew up and tied the knot with Atticus Aldridge, the son of Lord and Lady Sinderby, and they have a daughter together. Lily James, who initially rose to fame during her time on Downton Abbey, later received nominations for a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy Award for her depiction of Pamela Anderson in Pam and Tommy. The British actress has also featured in films such as The Dig, The Iron Claw, Baby Driver, Yesterday and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Jim Carter played Charles Carson. As the butler at Downton, audiences quickly warmed to Charles' professionalism, charm and loyalty to the family. He was an indispensable support to the family, especially helping Lady Mary through her grieving period over Matthew. The seasoned actor, known for his stage and TV roles before joining Downton Abbey, saw his career continue to flourish after the series. He appeared in Transformers: The Last Knight, The Good Liar, The Sea Beast and Wonka. Carter has also lent his voice to numerous historical documentaries about Stonehenge, the Royal family, World War II and the National Trust. Joanne Froggatt played Anna Bates. Anna Bates, portrayed by Joanne Froggatt, was a central character in Downton Abbey, involved in some of the most emotional and dramatic storylines, including love, marriage, and loss, all while serving Lady Mary Crawley and her family. Froggatt's heartfelt performance earned her three Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe award. Since leaving Downton, Froggatt has continued to make her mark on the small screen, lending her voice to Wendy in Bob the Builder and appearing in TV shows such as Liar, Angela Black, Sherwood, and North Shore. She also reprised her role for the Downton Abbey films.
