Though it hasn’t been confirmed just yet, we’re inclined to believe that unfortunately, Sherlock will be ending after its upcoming fourth season. Set to premiere on January 1st, star Benedict Cumberbatch has hinted in the past that it may be his last outing as the iconic detective and with the season finale set to receive a special theatrical release, it looks like this could very well be the end.
And really, we can’t blame them. Make no mistake about it, Sherlock is still without a doubt one of the best shows on television, but it’s always been a struggle to get the cast together to pop out another season. Cumberbatch and co-star Martin Freeman have become pretty big deals in Hollywood lately, with the former seeing another huge boost this year thanks to his role in Doctor Strange.
As it was, it took three years to get this upcoming season made, and with both of the show’s stars only becoming busier and busier, we imagine that now would probably be a good time to call it quits. Or at least, that’s what you’d think. According to co-creator Mark Gatiss though, everyone involved still wants to continue making new episodes.
Speaking to TV Line to promote the new season, here’s what he had to share:
“We honestly don’t know if this season will be the last. These three [episodes], we’ve very, very pleased with them. And everybody’s very keen to carry on. It’s just genuinely difficult to schedule everyone’s diaries. It was a nightmare to schedule this season… and that’s not going to go away. I mean, the success of Doctor Strange is not going to make Benedict short of work.”
What Gatiss says about Benedict not being short of work is definitely true. After his MCU debut proved to be incredibly successful, you can bet that Marvel wants to keep the actor around as long as possible, meaning he’ll have even less time for Sherlock now. Still, it’s reassuring to hear that everyone wants to keep making new episodes and hopefully, they’ll be able to.
If they can’t though, we can at least take comfort in knowing that Sherlock will likely go out on a high note, as co-creator Steven Moffat has said that the season 4 finale might just be his favorite episode to date.