Sherlock Holmes Spoilers

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous super-sleuth, Sherlock Holmes, gets an update with this adaptation of Lionel Wigram's comic book series by writer/director Guy Ritchie. Principal Photography began this past week in England on the Joel Silver production, starring Robert Downey, Jr. , Jude Law and Rachel McAdams and the production is shaping up to be anything but elementary. Now is as good a time as any to begin looking for clues...

Confirmed:

• Sherlock Holmes is a famous fictional detective of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. He is the creation of Scottish-born author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. (Wikipedia)


• A brilliant London-based consulting detective, Holmes is famous for his intellectual prowess, and is renowned for his skillful use of "deductive reasoning" while using abductive reasoning and astute observation to solve difficult cases. (Wikipedia)


• The film is based on an original story by Lionel Wigram from his upcoming graphic novel inspired by the Arthur Conan Doyle books. (Reuters)


• The screenplay involves Detective Sherlock Holmes and his stalwart partner Watson engaged in a battle of wits and brawn with a nemesis whose plot is a threat to all of England. (IMDB)


• The film is set in London, 1891. (Reuters)


• Guy Ritchie: "We're trying to be as authentic as we can to what we see as the original Sherlock Holmes. We are also specifically keen on keeping it authentic to Conan Doyle." (Reuters)


• "I really knew Sherlock Holmes from tapes -- I wasn't a very good reader," said Ritchie. "What I had imagined in my mind was not exactly what I'd seen previously manifested on film...I am a fan of many of the previous productions of Sherlock Holmes. I just think we can have a different take and I'd like to think a better take." (Reuters)


• Robert Downey Jr. was officially announced as the star of the film on July 9, 2008. (Variety)


• The 43-year-old said one reason he was chosen for the role may have been his involvement in action movie "Iron Man," which earned over $570 million in global ticket sales this year, and he promised his Holmes would be the best screen portrayal ever.
  "In case you aren't aware I had a hell of a summer, and it's made me much more viable to play a lead role than I might have (been) in the past," Downey Jr. told reporters in London, where shooting on "Sherlock Holmes" is about to begin. (Reuters)


• Jude Law plays John Watson. (IMDB)


• As well as bringing more action sequences to the story, the dynamic between Holmes and loyal assistant Dr. Watson looks set to differ from what audiences are used to with the casting of heartthrob Jude Law in the part. (Reuters)


• The casting of Jude Law as Dr. Watson was confirmed. It was also said that Watson will be "no bumbler," Downey Jr. emphasizing his background as a military surgeon and war veteran. (Empire)


• The main villain in Guy Ritchie's "Sherlock Holmes" will be a fellow named Blackwood, played by Mark Strong, a veteran of Ritchie's "RockNRolla." (AICN)



Mark Strong's character Blackwood was described as "a mysterious new adversary," who along with Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams), will be the primary "bad guys" in the film. (Empire)


• Rachel McAdams ("The Hot Chick," "Mean Girls," "The Notebook," "Wedding Crashers," "Red Eye," "THe Family Stone," "The Lucky Ones") will play Holmes love interest Irene Adler, a character introduced in the 1891 story "A Scandal in Bohemia." (THR via AICN)




 

• For her part, McAdams describes her character as an underworld adventuress with a criminal mind, but who also has her romantic and "delicious" sides. She says it will be a pleasure working with Downey Jr. and Ritchie, whom she calls a "collaborative, experimental director." (The Insider)


• While the character only appeared in that one story, McAdams' personage would return for any possible sequel. (The Hollywood Reporter)


• Kelly Reilly is Mary Morstan, the love interest of Dr. Watson that ultimately causes tension with Holmes, who resents her competition for Watson's affections. (Empire)


• The cast was mum about the possibility of another, much more menacing villain - and perhaps the appearance of Professor Moriarty - but Robert Downey Jr. did crack a smile when asked about it. (Empire)


• The director said he had never considered involving his wife Madonna in the new movie, and originally thought Downey Jr. may be too old for Holmes. (Reuters)


• The entire cast emphasized the fact that this will be a sexier, more action-packed Holmes, but also made reference to the fact that his bare-knuckle boxing and martial arts skills are deeply rooted in the writing of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. (Empire)


• Producing the film are Joel Silver, Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin. Jon Berg, Ollie Madden and Elishia Holmes are overseeing for Warner. (The Hollywood Reporter)


• "Sherlock Holmes" will take advantage of Robert Downey Jr's physical skills as the character displays brawn as well as brains. (Variety)


• Downey also reveals he'll have a lot of intense fight scenes in the film, which he says should be no problem for him since he has been training in martial arts for the past five years. (The Insider)


• The movie will present Holmes as more adventurous and less formal than previous screen incarnations and Downey Jr. says he is excited to take on the new action-packed challenge, saying it promises to be "big and fun." (The Insider)


• Downey: "Guy Ritchie's take on it was that...it's like [we'll be] making a contemporary version of a very classic portrayal of exactly how it was. But it's not telling one of the stories from one of the books or anything like that. Watson...it's all there. The cool thing about Sherlock Holmes was he's actually a very skilled martial artist. So it's going to have elements of that...it's not just his deduction and all that stuff. It's going to be a very action-packed version of that. To me it's really exciting.""I'm always training. I'm big into martial arts. We're putting together a team of people, we're going to try to do something a little more transcendent and interesting. I love the idea of martial arts and bare-knuckle boxing...before the Queensbury rules, where it was all kind of proper, it was this real balls-to-the-wall, brutal type stuff. Guy Ritchie's a martial artist, and martial arts student...so we're going to have a real fun time doing all that." (IESB)


• At the film's pre-production press conference at Freemasons Hall on Wednesday in London, Downey said, "I think me and [director Guy Ritchie] are well-suited to working together...The more I look into the books, the more fantastic it becomes. Holmes is such a weirdo." (Just Jared)


• The film goes into production before a comedy with Sacha Baron Cohen playing Holmes, and Will Ferrell playing his crime-fighting partner Dr. Watson. Columbia is fast tracking the comedy project, which is being written by Etan Cohen ("Tropic Thunder") and produced by Judd Apatow and Jimmy Miller. (Variety)


• Joel Silver said the movies would be released at different times -- Sherlock Holmes has a tentative release date of 2010 -- and Ritchie joked: "We've done as much as we can to sabotage Sacha Baron Cohen." (Reuters)


• Warner Bros. hopes will become a lucrative new franchise. (Reuters)


• Warner Bros. may be hoping the series can replace Harry Potter, which has three films left to go and could end in 2011. "What we've done is hopefully launched a franchise of Sherlock Holmes stories," Silver said. (Reuters)


• Director Guy Ritchie said "Sherlock Holmes" was his biggest movie "by a long shot" in terms of budget. (Reuters)


• Producer Joel Silver would not name the figure, but he called the budget "healthy" and said plans had not been affected by recent turmoil on the financial markets. (Reuters)


• Joel Silver confirmed that the film will be targeting a PG-13 rating. (Empire)


• The first pictures from the set emerged online on Friday, October 10, 2008 only days after the start of principal photography in London. While the shots do not reveal much (other than Director Guy Ritchie overdresses for film shoots in the same manner as Sam Raimi), there does appear to be a rooftop stunt being prepped with Downey's stunt double. (Just Jared)


• When asked what he could bring to a character portrayed countless times on film and television, he joked: "Clearly I'm going to do it better than it's ever been done...the more I read about it the more overwhelmed I was by the weight of it and the amount of people who will be watching to see if it's gotten right." (Reuters)

Rumored:

• They are apparently setting up the film to be part of a franchise with Moriarty playing an increasing role in each film. (IMDB)

Got any others? Add it to the comments section below. Think these spoilers suck? Sound off and share your thoughts. Updates will be added to this page as more information becomes known. Sherlock Holmes opens in 2010.