Michelle Dockery Shares Photo from the Set of the Downton Abbey Movie: 'And…We're Off'

The Crawleys are back and better than ever.

Michelle Dockery, who played Lady Mary in the hit drama Downton Abbey, shared a photo from the set of the upcoming film adaption of the series on Monday. The black-and-white picture shows a clapperboard setting up a shot, with actors — including what appears to be Jim Carter, AKA Mr. Carson — in the background.

Dockery, 36, wrote alongside the picture, “And…we’re off.”

The television series, which ran for six seasons, revolved around a high-society British family and its servants in the 20th century. The show announced its move to the big screen in July.

Sources confirmed to PEOPLE in July that Dockery, Maggie Smith, Laura Carmichael, Joanne Froggatt, Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern are returning for the movie.

RELATED VIDEO: The ‘Downton Abbey’ Cast Reveals How Crazy Reunions Get Since The Show Ended

Lily James, who played Lady Rose MacClare, is not returning. “I’m sadly not, but I’m so excited for it — I’m going to be front row,” the Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again star told PEOPLE this summer.

“I spoke to Laura [Carmichael] not long ago and was texting Michelle [Dockery] about Love Island and it’s going to be really exciting. And the whole gang is coming back,” James added.

James chalked up her absence not to “schedules” but to the plot. “My character Rose moved off to New York, so it would be farfetched to bring her back,” she explained. “I would have loved to have come back for a scene, but for a movie it can’t be like a Christmas special and it needs to be a focused storyline.”

She added, “There was no space for Rose.”

RELATED: Everything to Know About the Downton Abbey Movie — Including Who’s In and Who’s Out!

The cast is already getting reacquainted. In August, Dockery posted a picture in which she was hanging out with former Downton star Dan Stevens and the series’ Tom Branson, Allen Leech. She affectionately captioned the picture, “Dorks.”

“Since the series ended, fans of Downton have long been waiting for the Crawley family’s next chapter,” Focus Features chairman Peter Kujawski said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to join this incredible group of filmmakers, actors and craftspeople, led by Julian Fellowes and Gareth Neame, in bringing back the world of Downton to the big screen.”

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