‘Downton Abbey’ season 4 spoilers: Rob James-Collier on Thomas’ future

If there was one character who had a rather dramatic turnaround near the the end of “Downton Abbey” season 4, it was clearly one of the servants in Thomas. For almost the entirety of the series’ run on ITV, he has been a man consumed in many ways with trying to meddle or get involved in the affairs of others.

However, we started to see a little bit of a different side to Rob James-Collier’s character courtesy of the arrival of Jimmy, who was a man that he had some sort of genuine feelings for. The problem? Ed Speleers’ alter ego had a difficult time handling the labels that his sexuality could place upon him, and he resisted / attacked Thomas the moment that some sort of contact between the two became public. If it was not for a last-second save, Thomas could have been out of a job or even in jail.

So could we see him continue down a romantic road again in season 4? We don’t know the answer to that; however, it does seem as though one of his other key relationships (in his back-and-forth with Mrs. O’Brien) will need to be replaced thanks to the character no longer being a permanent part of the show. Speaking to TV Guide (via Downton Abbey Addicts), James-Collier had the following to say about the upcoming Thomas story in the wake of Siobhan Finneran’s exit:

“Fans won’t be disappointed next season. I’m pretty sure Thomas will find someone else to fall in line with him and start sniping.”

The actor did add that the “doors are still open” for O’Brien’s return at some point. One of the benefits of being a servant is that if the person behind the role chooses to depart, it’s easier to write them off the show than if someone like Matthew Crawley or Lady Sybil, who really have to be killed off in order for the story to make sense.

What do you want to see from Thomas moving forward? If you want to read some more on “Downton Abbey” via Julian Fellowes, you can do so just by heading on over to the link here.

Photo: ITV