Envelope Screening Series: What’s in the future for ‘Downton Abbey’ characters?

In January, the sixth -- and final -- season of “Downton Abbey” will premiere. And we already have separation anxiety from the characters we’ve grown so close to, just thinking of the finale.

With just one season left to go, fans of “Downton Abbey” can’t help but wonder what will happen to the Crawleys in, say, five years? Will the Bateses have a baby? Will Mrs. Hughes and Carson live happily ever after? Will Lady Edith ever find love?

“We’ll just have to live with the uncertainty,” says the show’s executive producer, Gareth Neame, during a Q&A at the Envelope Screening presentation of the series.

“The characters are not all going to be struck by lightning at the end of Season 6 and disappear,” Neame says. “They’re going to be left to lead their lives and we’ll never know exactly what happens.”

Unless, of course, there’s a spinoff series (hint, hint).

See what else Neame had to say about the series in the video above, and check out other Emmy-related conversations.