By the time Downton Abbey, one of the great Peak TV era shows, ended in 2015, Michelle Dockery’s Lady Mary Talbot had been lucky enough to find love again, this time with Matthew Goode’s Henry Talbot. The two of them were even expecting a child, and we got to meet little Caroline alongside her parents in the 2019 Downton Abbey movie. However, Henry wasn’t around in 2022’s Downton Abbey: A New Era and also won’t appear in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, one of the later 2025 movie releases. However, Goode sees his absence this time around as a “really positive thing” for a specific reason, and I have to say, I like the way he’s thinking.
As far as why Goode isn’t appearing in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, it boiled down to scheduling conflicts, as he told THR that he was busy filming the British crime thriller series Dept. Q. The actor also mentioned that even if he had been able to carve out time, there was only “half a page” of material for him. Goode continued:
And actually, I said, you know what? Why can’t this be a really positive thing? Because I don’t know what they’re doing. They might kill [Henry]! I didn’t see the script. But it’s a wonderful opportunity — [Mary, Michelle Dockery’s character] is like this modern feminist icon and in a weird way, maybe she doesn’t need a fella. Maybe Downton’s enough or maybe some old suitor will come in. Now, it opens up the story to have something significant happen. Why have Henry come?
I will admit that the idea of Mary losing another husband doesn’t sit too well with me. Downton Abbey fans (who can currently revisit the show with a Peacock subscription) will obviously remember that Dan Stevens’ Matthew Crawley was her chief love interest during the show’s first three seasons, but he died in a car crash on the way home after seeing his newborn son in the hospital. In fact, Henry being a race car driver was the main reason Mary initially broke off her romantic relationship with him, as she couldn’t bear the thought of losing another husband in a car crash.
But putting that aside, Mary did just fine without Henry by her side in A New Era, with his absence in that movie being attributed to him participating at a racing event in Istanbul. If Matthew Goode’s musing that Henry Talbot could be killed off is correct, it’s not like Mary is lacking in a support system to help her through this new round of grief, between her parents, sister, brother-in-law, the family’s staff, the list goes on. My only request is that if Henry does indeed shuffle off this mortal coil, don’t let it be from a car crash.
It’s also possible that nothing bad’s going to happen to Henry, and whatever his small role would have been in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale would simply have set up the reason for his exit. In any case, I’m ok with not seeing Mary with Henry again, nor do I need to see her take up another suitor. With this being the final film in the Downton Abbey franchise, I’d much rather see her spending as much time as possible with her family and other loved ones in her life.
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale opens in theaters on September 12. For the Matthew Goode fans out there, you’re also welcome to watch him play Detective Carl Morck in Dept. Q, which can now be streamed with a Netflix subscription.