Downton Abbey is busy gearing up for Season 4 of the hit period drama, which will air on ITV in the UK before hitting the US via PBS in later months. Because new episodes will hit the UK well before we will get them on this side of the pond, casting is already underway for the hit series and the program has finally found the right actor to play the show’s first black character. Gary Carr has joined Downton Abbey’s fourth season.
The actor has signed on to play Jack Ross, a jazz singer that should really usher in the fact the characters are living in the roaring twenties, although Lady Rose MacClare’s costumes last season were also a pretty great reminder. Although we don't know much about how Jack will relate to the Crawley family, according to The Daily Mail, the young singer is described as both “charming” and “charismatic.” Prior to Downton Abbey, Carr has starred in other UK programming, including Death in Paradise and Bluestone 42.
The third season left Downton Abbey wide open for new plotlines and character development. Notably, Dan Stevens and Jessica Brown Findlay left the show, and Siobhan Finneran, who plays O’Brien, finished out the season but will be gone before the Season 4 premiere. Some new cast members have already been added for the upcoming episodes, including a potential suitor for Mary, and I can’t wait to see what Carr brings to the table. From his profession in the series, it seems the nightlife fans get to see will certainly be jazzed up a bit.
