Should Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman’s Sherlock get a new series?

Roxy Simons
·Entertainment Editor
·5-min read
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman in Sherlock
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman in Sherlock, the hit BBC show that could return. (BBC)

Sherlock became a global phenomenon when it first premiered on the BBC back in 2010, catapulting the careers of leads Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman to stratospheric heights.

Now it seems that the series could return, as producer Sue Vertue has said that "there is a future for it" from her perspective, and that of show co-creators Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat. She told Deadline on Tuesday, 1 October: "We love that show and there is a future for it. One day. Maybe. If everyone wants to do it... it’s just getting everybody aligned, it’s getting the actors to want to do it."

The BBC series was rightly lauded, but the question is whether it is time for it to return? Or if the modern take on Arthur Conan Doyle's classic ended at the right time.

Watson and Sherlock (Credit: BBC )
Sherlock ran for four series and one special between 2010 and 2017, and producer Sue Vertue has said 'there is a future' for the series beyond that. (BBC )

Sherlock ran for four series and one special between 2010 and 2017, with the narrative adapting Conan Doyle novels and short stories like A Study in Scarlet, The Hound of the Baskervilles and His Last Bow. It came to an end in 2017 with the show's take on The Final Problem.

Cumberbatch portrayed the great detective himself, Sherlock Holmes, while Freeman took on the role of his plucky doctor side-kick John Watson. They began on a veritable high, with the show garnering more and more critical acclaim the longer it ran and viewers lapping up the series to make it one of the most watched British dramas in history.

While it rivalled Guy Ritchie's cinematic approach to the literary work, which starred Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law as Holmes and Watson respectively, there was something new and fresh about it that made it resonate just as much with viewers — if not more.

Ranking every 'Sherlock' episode so far
The show catapulted the careers of Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman and Andrew Scott (pictured as Moriarty) to stratospheric heights. (BBC)

The fourth series was arguably the worst of the BBC show, though, with creators Moffat and Gatiss moving further and further away from the author's original work to little effect. It culminated in a convoluted and unsatisfying final episode that left the door open for more by having Holmes and Watson back together again solving cases.

It was clear from the get go that Moffat and Gatiss intended to make a fifth season of the show, and both have spoken out about their desire to do so in the past. In 2017, Moffat told fans on Facebook: "Re: Sherlock's future - for those of you asking, it's definitely the end. Of Chapter One.

"Dr Watson is now Doyle's brave widower and Sherlock Holmes has become the wise and humane version of the main run of the stories (we've focused, so far, on the cold Holmes of the early days.) Whether we ever get to Chapter Two —our boys consciously living the myth and battling wrong-doers— rather depends on our two stars. I'd be slightly surprised if we never made it again. But I've been surprised before."

When it comes to critic response, the writing was on the wall. Season 1 has a 91% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, while Season 2 was a franchise high of 94%, and Season 3 received an equally admirable 91%. But 2016 The Abominable Bride earned just 62% and Season 4 reached a low of 54%.

SHERLOCK, (from left): Benedict Cumberbatch, Matin Freeman, 'The Lying Detective', (Season 4, ep. 402, aired Jan. 8, 2017). photo: Colin Hutton / ©BBC/Hartswood Filmas / Courtesy: Everett Collection
The fourth series was arguably the worst of the BBC show, and it did poorly with both critics and viewers but it left the story open for more which it arguably should follow through with so it doesn't end on a low. (BBC)

In terms of story, it would be fitting for this iteration of the characters to return one day simply because the show was left on a bad note with its fourth season. For Moffat and Gatiss to deliver a newer take on the classic will allow them to move on from that poorly received season and end it in a better way.

Earlier this year, Gatiss raised hopes of there being a follow-up film by telling Deadline: "We’d like to make a film but trying to get everyone together is very difficult... you’ll have to ask Benedict and Martin.”

Freeman has been open about his unhappiness about his increased fame as a result of the series' popularity, with Cumberbatch has called "pathetic" in the past. In 2018, Cumberbatch told The Telegraph: "It's pretty pathetic if that's all it takes to let you not want to take a grip of your reality. What, because of expectations? I don't know. I don't necessarily agree with that."

Like Moffat and Gatiss have explained, though, it will be difficult given Cumberbatch and Freeman's busy schedules. Both are contracted to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and both have other commitments in both the film and TV sphere. Now they're more famous than ever, it is questionable whether they'll ever be at a point they could reprise their roles but it's not impossible.

Sherlock is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

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