Sherlock Holmes

cymrococh · July 11, 2008

I really like the Sherlock Holmes stories and I therefore find everything in this story depressing:

Robert Downey Jr is to play Sherlock Holmes in Guy Ritchie's forthcoming "all-action" take on the famous detective.

The news follows the announcement that Sacha Baron Cohen will play the character in Judd Apatow's separate comedic project, which will also star Will Ferrell as Holmes' sidekick Dr Watson.

Early signs suggest that the films could hardly be more different, with Ritchie planning to focus on Holmes' skills as a boxer and swordsman, while Baron Cohen will presumably inject Arthur Conan Doyle's creation with a dose of high camp. Nevertheless, the existence of two films based on the same character raises the intriguing prospect of a box office battle in 2009, and if Hollywood history is anything to go by, there is likely to be only one winner. Previous celluloid double takes on figures such as Truman Capote and Wyatt Earp have seen one film prosper while the other flounders.

US reports suggest Ritchie's version is likely to make it into cinemas first, with a planned shoot in the autumn for an October 2009 date. Apatow is producing the Baron Cohen project but hasn't yet announced a director, which suggests his version could be lagging behind.

The other possible outcome is that one or other of the projects could be shelved as the studios backing them get cold feet. A planned telling of the life of poet Dylan Thomas from Pierce Brosnan's Irish Dreamtime company was dropped after John Maybury's similarly-themed The Edge of Love was announced. Michael Sheen was to play Thomas, with Miranda Richardson as his wife, Caitlin. But the project has not yet seen the light of day, despite being announced three years ago.

Downey Jr was reportedly brought on board Ritchie's production by his wife, Susan, who is a producer on the British director's latest gangster thriller, Rocknrolla. The Iron Man star apparently read the script during a visit to the Rocknrolla shoot and expressed an interest in taking the part.

John am Rhein · July 11, 2008

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