In the UK the episode aired at Christmastime, and so here in the States, we're just catching up with this terrible fate for one of the show's most loved characters. (Unless, of course you were illegally sourcing episodes online…) Which means we already know why Matthew had to die. And the answer is so simple it sucks: Dan Stevens, who plays Matthew, no longer wanted to work on Downton Abbey.
The Telegraph spoke with Julian Fellowes, and the show's creator put it plainly:
" If he [Stevens] had been prepared to come back for maybe two or three episodes in a series, that would be different. Then we could have had a foreign posting or invented a career that would have made it possible for him to be away. Otherwise we would have had to make this tremendously successful love affair between Mary and Matthew unhappy, which I didn’t feel would be believable. For them to then separate and Matthew never set eyes on his son again would not be believable either. So we didn’t really have any option. By him dying, their love can remain intact.”
Of course, he's right. It wouldn't have made any sense to send Matthew away from Mary for an entire season, which could be up to a year in the show's storyline. It would hurt the integrity of the show, even more than that burn victim "cousin." So, for all you putting the blame on Downton's writers, know that it should really be placed on Stevens, since he chose not to renew his contract.
READ MORE: http://www.cinemablend.com/television/Why-Downton-Abbey-Why-Julian-Fellowes-Explains-52690.html
2 comments:
The ending was difficult to comprehend.
I am amazed that he couldn't let them have a few episodes of his time. Downton Abbey made Dan Stevens famous and leaving like he did forced the writer to kill off another character so soon after Sybil. DS owed some loyalty to this man, Julian Fellowes, didn't he?
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