While fans of PBS' hit TV series, Downton Abbey, still continue to stay faithful to the popular British-American drama, a majority of them were undoubtedly less than pleased to see the abrupt death of Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens) at the close of season 3.

In lieu of the tragic events of its Christmas special, the program's loyalists will certainly be relieved to learn that all of Downton's current standouts have been signed up until the end of series five.

Executive producer Gareth Neame touched on the respective move to the Daily Mail by stating the following:

"I can tell you that we have now signed up the main cast members until series five, so there won't be any more shock exits for a while," he said.

Lady Mary set to have multiple love interests?

Downton Abbey is set to launch in the U.S. on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014, and run until Sunday, February 23, 2014. Be sure to keep checking back for more of the latest details on the TV series. For more DA news related to the upcoming installment, a video clip can be viewed below.

Tags: Downtown Abbey PBS television