Sherlock Holmes 3has been stuck in development hell for almost a decade now. Although the firstSherlock Holmeswas a hit and the sequelSherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadowsmade even more money worldwide,A Game of Shadowswas also somewhat underwhelming. There may have also been a sense ofSherlockfatigue between theRobert Downey Jr.movies and theBenedict Cumberbatchseries, so finding a fresh angle on a third entry has proven difficult. When we last reported onSherlock Holmes 3back in May 2018, the film had been set for a 2020 release date with Robert Downey Jr. andJude Lawset to reprise their roles as Holmes and Watson, respectively. But now it looks like we’ll have to wait a little longer.
Deadline reports thatSherlock Holmes 3has been kicked back to Christmas 2021. It’s previous 2020 date will now go to an untitled Warner Bros. Event Film. But that Christmas 2021 date is already pretty crowded. You’ve gotHotel Translyvania 4for the kids, the long-awaited adaptation ofWicked, and an untitled Disney live-action movie. That’s not to mention the second weekend ofAvatar 3assuming James Cameron proves us all wrong again and shows that there’s still a huge audience forAvatarmovies.
Personally, I don’t seeSherlock Holmes 3ever coming together. If it were a necessary tentpole for Warner Bros., wouldn’t they have worked harder to get it into production? There are plenty of Sherlock stories to tell, and the only two schedules you really need to nail down are Downey and Law. Furthermore, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of clamoring for a thirdSherlock Holmesmovie. People know that these films are now, and they’ve been pretty disposable. That’s not to say that Warner Bros. is against making disposable entertainment, but they have so many options outside theSherlock Holmesfranchise that it’s hard to see where the demand is coming from.
Are you interested in aSherlock Holmes 3? Why? I’m genuinely curious. Sound off in the comments.
