Movies News Talk
Four seasons and a special later, BBC's Sherlock already covered some of the best and most powerful Sherlock Holmes books and tales. Beginning in 2010, the contemporary Sherlock series ran four seasons with three 90-minute episodes plus a holiday special the same length. From John and Sherlock's first case together to the "final problem," the Sherlock series ran brilliantly and there is no need for a comeback. Conversely, Sherlock Holmes by Robert Downey Jr. only got two films. Consequently, Sherlock Holmes 3 has perhaps more promise than Sherlock season 5.
Though it had flaws, Sherlock season 4 left no open ends and gave the show a pleasing ending. While Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows included Professor Moriarty and was roughly based on The Final Problem, Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes told an original plot. While a TV show like BBC's Sherlock or CBS's Elementary might run several stories and cases each season, the theatrical Sherlock Holmes films can only address so many at once. Though the sequel was not a straight copy of any one Sherlock book, there would be hundreds of others for Sherlock Holmes 3 to be based on. Downey Jr. has a lot of space to grow his Sherlock series.
Strong beginning for the series, Sherlock Holmes (2009) helped spark the "Sherlock resurgence" of the 2010s, which would eventually include BBC's Sherlock and Elementary. Having just seen Iron Man's enormous popularity, Robert Downey Jr. felt Holmes would be his next big character in addition to Tony Stark. The movie was a smash and spawned a two-year later sequel called A Game of Shadows. Though preserving Sherlock's core, both Sherlock Holmes and A Game of Shadows presented an intriguing, more action-packed interpretation of the character.
At the global box office, Sherlock Holmes (2009) and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows brought in combined over $1 billion. With a cast ranging from Jude Law to Rachel McAdams to Jared Harris, Downey Jr.'s performance as Holmes was a highlight of both movies. Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes series attempted to make Arthur Conan Doyle's stories blockbusters from the set pieces to the production design. Two really great films would be frustrating if a third picture never materialized. Conversely, following a great start, BBC's Sherlock was in slow decline in seasons 3 and 4. While Sherlock Holmes 2 could still require a sequel, season 4 of Sherlock was the worst of the shows.
Like The Abominable Bride did between seasons 3 and 4, maybe the greatest approach of revisiting Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock series would be via a movie or TV special. Having undoubtedly introduced Sherlock Holmes and John Watson to younger generations by reimagining old stories as modern-day, fast-paced TV episodes, Sherlock is among the most significant adaptations of the character ever put on film. As Sherlock and Watson respectively, Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman both provide fantastic performances; it would always be interesting to see them return these characters in any form.
But Sherlock season 4 showed it was time to call it quits between Moriarty fakeouts and a long-lost sibling. Having several seasons of Sherlock will never work since part of what made it so great was witnessing its eponymous character develop and become a better version of herself due of influence of friends and family. Thus, compared to three ninety-minute episodes, a TV feature or special starring Cumberbatch and Freeman would be far more intriguing. Whereas Downey Jr. has only acted Sherlock twice, there isn't much that hasn't been done with those iterations of the characters.
Although both Sherlock Holmes 3 and BBC's Sherlock season 5 have been in flux for some time, for various reasons the former sounds far more interesting than the latter. For Sherlock Holmes, the early 2010s were explosive in terms of movie adaptations. Starting Robert Downey Jr. as the title role and Jude Law as John Watson, Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes debuted in 2009. Beginning on BBC a few months later, Sherlock season 1 starred Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as contemporary Sherlock and Watson. Among the most often seen Sherlock Holmes films ever produced are both versions.
While Sherlock season 4 finished in January 2017, a third Sherlock Holmes film has been under development for more than ten years. Though there have been significant Sherlock adaptations since then, including but not limited to the Enola Holmes films, both Downey Jr.’s Sherlock features and Cumberbatch's Sherlock series remain rather popular. Though opinions on who is the superior Sherlock for the twenty-first century vary, not to mention other versions like Elementary. Still, should they transpire, Sherlock Holmes 3 and Sherlock season 5 would both create a lot of buzz.
Sherlock never really was canceled, although a fifth season never was created. Though at the last moment John and Sherlock were strolling together into the sunset, ready to go on fresh adventures, Season 4 felt like the end of the story. Still, neither the writers nor the actors ever ruled out the prospect of a fifth season or any other kind of follow-up. According to Sherlock co-creator and Mycroft Holmes actor Mark Gatiss (via Deadline), "like to make a film but trying to get everyone together is very difficult."
Susan Downey is Other than it's still very much alive in our hearts, look, no, there is no update. Every daily conversation we have centers around "What is the best next version of that?" Because anytime I see Robert and Jude together, which fortunately, I do get to see a few times a year, we hang out, and I'm just like, "Can I get these guys back on screen together?", it's magic. We definitely have some ideas in the works; but, there has to be a really compelling rationale and a fantastic narrative. Sherlock Holmes 3 has spent many years in flux. A sequel to A Game of Shadows was confirmed shortly after the release of the second film, yet years went by with no updates. In July 2019, Rocketman director Dexter Fletcher was announced to be replacing Guy Ritchie as the director of the third installment. More recently, following the announcement that Guy Ritchie was going to helm a Young Sherlock series for Amazon, producer Susan Downey confirmed to Screen Rant that Sherlock Holmes 3 is still “very much alive.”
While there could always be new cases for Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock to solve, the BBC series had a very definitive ending. Sherlock season 4 may have been flawed, but it gave the series a satisfying conclusion and left no loose ends. A Game of Shadows, however, ends with Sherlock Holmes faking his death and returning at the last minute. Twelve years later, this cliffhanger has yet to be paid off.
In this incarnation of Sherlock from creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman assume the roles of Sherlock and Watson as they establish their partnership and begin solving strange mysteries throughout the U.K. and beyond. Set in a more 2010's modern setting, Sherlock's eccentric and complex nature is accentuated as he solves seemingly supernatural crimes with unparalleled intellect while struggling to connect with others on a human level. Meanwhile, Watson blogs the stories summarizing their cases while building a strained but caring friendship with his new partner.