George Clooney Set for Guest Appearance DOWNTON ABBEY's Fifth Season

Looks like George Clooney may be doing some research in preparation for his upcoming nuptials to fiance Amal Alamuddin, according to UK's The Guardian. The site reports that the actor will portray an American guest at a wedding in the highly anticipated fifth season of DOWNTON ABBEY.

A spokesperson for ITV revealed that the episode, set to air at Christmas, was specifically written to raise money for a charity fundraiser, called Text Santa for ITV. While the actor will appear in a sketch, he will not act in the full Christmas episode. The scenes have already been filmed, and Clooney is set to appear opposite 'Downton' stars Hugh Bonneville and Michelle Dockery. No further details were provided.

Clooney, a big fan of the historical drama series, became good friends with Bonneville, who portrays Lord Robert Crawley on the show, when they co-starred in the recent war drama Monuments Men.

Season 5 of DOWNTON ABBEY will premiere in the U.S. on Jan. 4 on PBS. Click here to watch a trailer for the upcoming season.

A pre-World War I British period drama, DOWNTON ABBEY is one of the most widely watched and critically acclaimed television dramas in the world. The international series has won multiple Golden Globe, PrimetimeEmmy and Screen Actors Guild Awards.

"Downton Abbey," is the recipient of multiple Golden Globe, PrimetimeEmmy and Screen Actors Guild awards. The international hit series is from writer and creator Julian Fellowes.