‘Sherlock Holmes 3’ Writer Finally Breaks Silence on Whether Robert Downey Jr.’s Threequel Will Ever Happen

Robert Downey Jr.’s take on Sherlock Holmes has remained one of the most beloved franchise reinventions of the past two decades, blending Victorian mystery with blockbuster energy. Fans have spent years hoping for a third chapter to close out the story that began with 2009’s original film and continued with 2011’s ‘A Game of Shadows’. That wait has stretched well beyond a decade, and the silence around a follow up has only grown louder with time.

The road to ‘Sherlock Holmes 3’ has been anything but smooth. Just months after ‘A Game of Shadows’ premiered in December 2011, ‘The Avengers’ debuted to record breaking box office success, and playing Tony Stark ended up consuming much of Downey’s schedule for years afterward. Multiple writers cycled through the project over the years before Chris Brancato eventually took over the screenplay, with Dexter Fletcher previously attached to direct following Guy Ritchie’s exit.

Now, ScreenRant has shared an update straight from Brancato himself. Speaking with The Direct while promoting his new series ‘The Westies’, Brancato confirmed that the mystery action threequel remains in limbo, saying it is up to the movie gods whether it gets made, and pointing to Robert Downey Jr.’s very, very busy schedule as the reason for the ongoing delays.

Despite the uncertain future, Brancato revealed some encouraging news buried in the update. He confirmed that he has already written a full draft of the script, and his co-writer Michael Panes described that draft as very good. So the material exists. What remains missing is a green light and a clear runway on Downey’s calendar.

That calendar looks packed for the foreseeable future. Downey has grown increasingly busy on screen in recent years, following Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’, which earned him his first Oscar, an Emmy nominated turn in HBO’s ‘The Sympathizer’, and his upcoming Marvel return as Doctor Doom in ‘Avengers Doomsday’ and ‘Avengers Secret Wars’. There is also the matter of the Warner Bros. and Paramount merger, since the first two ‘Sherlock Holmes’ films were distributed by Warner Bros., meaning any future installment will likely need Paramount’s approval once that deal closes. Given Secret Wars production and Downey’s expected promotional duties for Doomsday, the earliest a new Holmes film could realistically begin shooting is sometime in 2027.

In the meantime, the Holmes universe is staying busy without its biggest star. Netflix recently released Millie Bobby Brown’s ‘Enola Holmes 3’ to strong reviews and nearly 21 million views, while Prime Video is developing ‘Young Sherlock’ season two and The CW is working on ‘Sherlock & Daughter’. Those projects should keep detective loving audiences occupied while the wait for Downey’s version continues.

For now, fans are left with a finished script, a hopeful writer, and no timeline. Do you think Robert Downey Jr. will ever find time in his Marvel packed schedule to holster his cane sword one more time as Sherlock Holmes?