Summary
While Prime Video forges ahead with their own take on the classic character, Susan Downey offers an encouraging update for Robert Downey Jr.‘sSherlock Holmes 3. The Oscar winner first brought his take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic private detective to life with the 2009 movie, for which he won the Golden Globe for Best Actor. The movie’s success led to a sequel in 2011, which similarly proved a commercial hit, though while plans have been in place foraSherlock Holmes 3, they’ve yet to materialize for a variety of reasons.
During a recent interview withScreen Rantfor the upcomingSweet Toothseason 3, Susan Downey was asked about the progress of the thirdSherlock Holmesmovie in the wake of the recently announced prequel show at Prime Video. Though the producer acknowledged that there’s no proper update she could share at the time, she did offer an encouraging response,assuring that the project is still “very much alive in our hearts”, and they’re just trying to figure out the right approach to the threequel. See what Downey shared below:

Susan Downey: I mean, look, no, there’s no update, other than it’s still very much alive in our hearts. Every day we talk about, “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. There needs to be a really strong reason, it needs to be a great story, and we do have some things in the works.
Why Now Is The Perfect Time For Sherlock Holmes 3
Downey Jr.’s return to a fan-favorite role fresh off of both his Oscar success and acclaim in HBO’sThe Sympathizerwould be the perfect thing for Team Downey and Warner Bros. to capitalize on inSherlock Holmes 3.
The road forSherlock Holmes 3’s development has certainly been a bumpy one for the past decade, with different writers being brought in to pen the script and Guy Ritchie, who helmed the first two movies, beingreplaced byRocketman’s Dexter Fletcherin the director’s chair. Despite previous release dates being set, and filming starts pushed back for creative reshufflings and the COVID-19 pandemic,Downey and fellow Team Downey producer Amanda Burrell have frequently assured that the project remains a priority for them.

While some may feel that over a decade passing is enough time to potentially abandon the project, there are a variety of reasons for why now is ultimately the perfect time forSherlock Holmes 3to happen. Part of the previous delays seemed to stem from Downey Jr.’s busy schedule with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though given his tenure came to an end with 2019’sAvengers: Endgame,he should have more room to take part in another blockbuster projectto the level of theSherlock Holmesmovies. Furthermore, he’s yet to line up another major franchise since leaving behind Tony Stark, particularly afterthe infamousDolittlereboot.
Robert Downey Jr.’s Sherlock Holmes 3: 5 Stories It Could Adapt (& 5 Ways It Can Follow On From A Game Of Shadows)
Robert Downey Jr is back as Sherlock Holmes in the franchise’s third film. It has plenty of great source material in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories.
One of the bigger reasons why now is the perfect time for Downey Jr. to return forSherlock Holmes 3is his recentOscar win for Best Supporting Actor inOppenheimer. At the time of the first movie’s release, Downey Jr. was not only seeing a resurgence in popularity thanks to the firstIron Manmovie, but was even up for an Oscar nomination for his turn inTropic Thunder. Downey Jr.’s return to a fan-favorite role fresh off of both his Oscar success and acclaim in HBO’sThe Sympathizerwould be the perfect thing for Team Downey and Warner Bros. to capitalize on inSherlock Holmes 3.
Sherlock Holmes 3
Cast
While plot details are unknown, Sherlock Holmes 3 will be the third installment in the Sherlock Holmes franchise, starring Roberty Downey Jr. and Jude Law as the titular detective and his sidekick Dr. Watson. Although the first two films were directed by Guy Ritchie, Dexter Fletcher is set to replace Ritchie in the role of director for the third. The film may pick up where the events of the second film left off, finally answering the question of how Holmes survived his fall from the Reichenbach Falls with Professor Moriarty, as teased at the end of the previous film.