Sherlock Holmes 3 Future Looks Bleak After Grim Update From Franchise Star

If you were still holding out hope for Sherlock Holmes 3 with Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, here comes a buzzkill: the guy who plays Lestrade isn’t feeling great about it.

Eddie Marsan says the threequel might never happen

While chatting with ScreenRant’s Grant Hermanns about his new movie, All the Devils Are Here, Eddie Marsan (aka Inspector Lestrade in the Guy Ritchie Sherlock movies) said the most deflating thing a fan could hear about the long-discussed third film: he doesn’t think it’s ever going to actually, you know, exist.

"Every year, I hear that they’re going to do it, they’re going to do it, they’re going to do it, and it never happens. I don’t know. I don’t know if it’s ever going to happen."

They really were close once

This isn’t coming out of nowhere. Producer Susan Downey (who produced the first two films and is, yes, Robert Downey Jr.’s wife) said not long ago that they got surprisingly close to pulling Sherlock Holmes 3 together before the pandemic stopped the world. The team was actively moving toward a shoot, but the schedule window slammed shut before they could get rolling, largely because Jude Law was about to become unavailable. One other tidbit she shared: the third movie has long been envisioned as taking place in America.

The road so far, and the road ahead

• 2009: Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes hits theaters, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, with Eddie Marsan as Inspector Lestrade.
• 2011: Sequel Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows arrives.
• Pre-2020: A third film nearly comes together; active development underway.
• 2020: COVID-19 shutters those plans; momentum stalls.
• Since: Basically radio silence on anything official.
• 2026: Downey Jr. is slated to return to Marvel in Avengers: Doomsday.
• 2027: Avengers: Secret Wars is expected to follow.

So what does that mean?

Between years of delays and Downey Jr. gearing up for two Avengers-sized commitments, the window for a Holmes threequel keeps shrinking. It’s not impossible, but if you’re betting on timelines, Marsan’s skepticism feels pretty grounded.

Bottom line: Sherlock Holmes 3 isn’t dead, but it’s definitely not alive. If it ever materializes, it’ll be because schedules finally line up and someone slams their foot on the gas. Until then, don’t hold your breath.