While Sherlock and Elementary have been making sure Sherlock Holmes is receiving proper attention on television, it's been a few years since Arthur Conan Doyle's creation was last seen on the big screen. While it didn't break any records, 2011's Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows performed solidly both critically and commercially, but it's taken a while to get Sherlock Holmes 3 off the ground. Fortunately, 2016 has started to see some progress with the project when it comes to the script, and today's news reveal that Warner Bros has kicked things to the next level on the writing front.
Originally Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation scribe Drew Pearce had been tapped to write Sherlock Holmes 3, and then we learned in April that James Coyne had been hired to rewrite the script. Now Variety is reporting that star Robert Downey Jr. and Warner Bros have assembled a writers room to "shape the script and story." The team's members include Guardians of the Galaxy's Nicole Perlman, Baywatch's Justin Malen, Rogue One's Gary Whitta, Tomb Raider's Geneva Dworet-Robertson and Snowden's Kieran Fitzgerald. It's noted that Sherlock Holmes 3 has been one of Warner Bros' top priorities, but with Downey's busy Marvel schedule, it's been hard to move forward.
As the article mentioned, it's rare for a writers room to be assembled to crack just one movie. Just look back over the last year, and you'll see that the Transformers, Hasbro and Godzilla/Kong franchises have formed these groups so they can tackle multiple entries. However, one source told the publication that in this case, it makes sense to "gather a good group" rather than bring in a few writers for rewrites/polishes. While not confirmed, it almost sounds like Drew Pearce and James Coyne's work has been tossed aside, and this team is starting from scratch. If that's what it takes to make Sherlock Holmes 3 the best it can be, then ideally these writers will work efficiently together to craft an excellent story.
When we last left Sherlock Holmes in A Game of Shadows, he had just fallen into Reichenbach Falls with Professor James Moriarty, as that was the only way the detective could successfully eliminate his nemesis. However, in the movie's final minutes, moviegoers learned that Mr. Holmes had survived, though he wasn't ready to directly reveal to his best friend/partner, Dr. John Watson, that he was still alive. Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law will reprise their roles as Sherlock and Watson, respectively, but no other actors, new or established, have been added to Sherlock Holmes 3 yet. King Arthur: Legend of the Sword's Guy Ritchie is also expected to direct again.
Sherlock Holmes 3 still doesn't have a release date, but stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all the most relevant updates surrounding the threequel.
