The series, which ran for six seasons from 2010 to 2015, earned three Golden Globes and six Primetime Emmys in the US, but was never presented with a major BAFTA award in the UK.
Downton was instead recognized by the BAFTAs in 2015 with a “special award,” which some saw as a consolation prize in lieu of the series winning an award in a major category.
“If I say ‘BAFTA-led’ it sounds like I’m seeing fury—I’m not really,” Fellowes told The Times in the area. “I’ve had a really good run of them. But I think [Bafta et al] are out of step.”
Fellowes’ remarks come ahead of the release of the franchise’s third and final film: Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale later this month.
The conclusion will follow Robert Crawley, 7th Earl of Grantham (Hugh Bonneville), as he plans to pass on his estate to his daughter Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery).
However, news of Mary’s divorce from Matthew Goode Henry Talbot raises questions about their impending stewardship, as the family’s financial troubles could see them sell and leave the abbey for good.
Fellowes said he doesn’t expect critics to be kind to the film upon its release. “I don’t have to read the review anymore – I could tell you what it says beforehand,” he said.
“I was no longer trying to attract new viewers, and I realized we were saying goodbye.”
In her two-star review of the previous Downton film, New Age Slavery, The Independent’s Clarisse Loughrey compared the film to “a dinner party guest who wouldn’t get sick and go home.”
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She wrote: “The first film released in 2019 was meant to pay a final farewell to Downton’s 47 TV episodes and five Christmas specials – a chance to tie up some loose ends and settle things with a hearty pat on the back.”
“A New Age manages to weave even more threads, and weaves in neat little arcs in the most seamless way possible. It’s as much a part of the movie as an encore can be.”
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale in theaters nationwide September 12
