‘Downton Abbey’ season 4 notes: Hugh Bonneville and Julian Fellowes

For our newest edition of “Downton Abbey” notes, it only seems appropriate to begin with one of the show’s biggest stars in Hugh Bonneville, and a different sort of role that the actor is going to be playing on the upcoming series “Da Vinci’s Demons.” The show premieres on Starz Friday night in America, and will be coming to Fox overseas next week.

This is going to be a very different role for Bonneville, mostly because it features him in a state of dress that we’ve never quite seen before on the period drama: one that is completely undressed. In an interview with the Daily Mail, Bonneville explained out it was the presence of his former “Lost in Austen” co-star Tom Riley who helped to convince him to take the part:

“When Tom Riley calls and says, ‘How do you fancy playing a naked, hungover git who gets assassinated?’, you tend to say, ‘I’m free on Thursday next week.’”

Bonneville filmed this part prior to production for season 4, and the Starz series’ creator David S. Goyer also explained to the website that he was specifically sought on for this role:

“I wanted someone like Hugh, who’s known for a proper English show, because I wanted to signal that this isn’t your grandfather’s historical drama.”

In other news – Meanwhile, be sure to check out the trailer below for the new adaptation of the Shakespeare classic “Romeo & Juliet,” as this script was actually penned by known other than “Downton Abbey” creator Julian Fellowes. There are also some other TV connections here courtesy of “Gossip Girl” star Ed Westwick along with Emmy winner Damian Lewis of “Homeland” fame.

If you want to take a look behind the scenes of the “Downton Abbey” season 4 set, be sure to check out our story over at the link here.

Photo: ITV