STFU: There's Going to be a Shirley MacLaine-Maggie Smith Showdown on Downton

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In the mother of all mother-in-law battles, Carnival Films has announced that Shirley MacLaine is joining the cast of Downton Abbey for the show's upcoming third season. According to the Hollywood Reporter, she will be playing Martha Levinson, the American mother of Lady Grantham (played by American actress Elizabeth McGovern), and will join the cast for shooting the new season next month.

Though the third installment of the wildly popular period drama will air in the UK in September, the US will likely have to wait until January 2013 to view the inevitable war of one-liners coming our way. The only silver lining there is that we might be able to escape a "Shit Martha Levinson Says" redux.

· 'Downton Abbey' Adds Shirley MacLaine for Season 3 [Hollywood Reporter]
· All Downton Abbey coverage [Racked]