Ooo, new fancy schmancy Sherlock Holmes title graphic. That was released, along with some new details and confirmations, at a press conference in London today celebrating the beginning of principal photography. Empire was on hand and confirms Guy Ritchie’s take on the detective will be “sexier, edgier and more action-tastic.” And Downey-tastic. Am I right? Yeah!
Jude Law was officially confirmed as Holmes’s partner-in-crime-busting Dr. Watson, who obviously won’t be depicted as usual, but with an emphasis on his history as a military surgeon and war veteran. And a lot prettier. English actress Kelly Reilly was also confirmed as Watson’s love interest from the books Mary Morstan, a character that causes tension with Holmes as he envies Watson’s affection for her. Finally, Mark Strong is on board as the villain Blackwood as well.
The film will shoot “in the Victorian streets of London and Liverpool, and that scenes will be shot in Freemason’s Hall … and at St. Paul’s Cathedral. Producer Joel Silver also confirmed that the film will be a PG-13 … Everyone involved referenced the fact that this will be an action-packed Holmes, but emphasised that all his abilities, including bare-knuckle boxing and martial arts expertise, are sourced from Conan Doyle’s books.”
From the official press release: “In a dynamic new portrayal of Conan Doyle’s famous characters, Sherlock Holmes sends Holmes and his stalwart partner Watson on their latest challenge. Revealing fighting skills as lethal as his legendary intellect, Holmes will battle as never before to bring down a new nemesis and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy the country.”
Silver said that “What we’ve done is hopefully launched a franchise of Sherlock Holmes stories,” and I think this will inevitably be so – but if this becomes a smash franchise along with Iron Man, will we ever see Downey Jr. in anything else besides my dreams ever again? I finally admit that I am a teeny bit weary (and by weary, I mostly just mean unsure) of where they are taking this project, but one thing is for sure: this ain’t gonna be your grandaddy’s Holmes.
