HBO Max Developing Two Sherlock Holmes Series

Sherlock Holmes is a character that has lasted through thousands of adaptations and productions across various media from books, video games, and everything in between. One of the more popular pieces of media to use the character were the two-movie film series starring Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law. Although the last entry in that film series was 2011’s Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, and work on the potential third film has been trying to take off ever since, the film’s universe is set to expand in a new format.

According to Variety, two new shows are in early development with HBO Max and with Robert Downey Jr. and his spouse Susan Downey executive producing. There has been no confirmation on whether Robert Downey Jr. will reprise his role as the famous detective, but we can assume he likely won’t be the main character. Variety’s sources have let them know that both shows would each have a focus on new characters introduced in the “Sherlock Holmes 3” film.

As successful as the two previous movies were at the box office, it seems like Warner Bros. would like to make up for the 10+ years of lost time that they haven’t used the IP. At the very least it does indirectly sound like they’re confident in the next film starting up if new characters are hinging on being introduced in the work.

If you’ve been keeping an ear out for any potential news on the third film, all of the above may not be a surprise for you. Back in 2020 during a Fast Company Innovation Festival keynote panel, both Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey spoke about potentially expanding the franchise into a “mystery-verse” with television spin-offs on HBO and HBO Max.

The last release date we had for the next film was December 22, 2021, and we’re now in April of 2022. These shows are only in early production and we still don’t have a proper release date for the third film, but multi-media plans would have you believe that something new really will come.