Though stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman have one or two other things going on, they still thankfully find time to to come back to this modern day adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s great detective. And while the wait between seasons has grown longer for fans, production is almost completed on the show’s long-awaited fourth season Cumberbatch made his first panel appearance this year, along with Amanda Abbington (Mary Watson), creators Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat, and producer Sue Vertue.
Fans were treated to two videos. The first was a tongue-in-cheek behind-the-scenes clip showing Mofatt and Gatiss sitting below a whiteboard labeled “Spinoff Ideas,” which included Mrs. Hudson – The Early Years and Doctor Who-Sherlock Crossover – over my dead body. The pair argued over which cast member was allowed to come to Comic Con, since they could only afford to take one due to Cumberbatch’s hair maintenance budget. Cut to Rupert Graves (Lestrade), Louise Brealy (Molly) and Amanda Abbington playing a game of Sherlock-themed Clue. Abbington eventually wins and immediately comes out on stage.
Next, they showed the first teaser trailer for Season 4, which you can conveniently watch below:
Highlights:
– They’re two weeks from finishing season 4 and are flying back tonight with an enormous scene to shoot on Tuesday morning. Gatiss called it the longest monologue Cumberbatch has ever had to do on the show, with the actor admitting he has 26 pages of dialogue to shoot next week alone.
– Typically the creators give fans three keywords as a hint for what to expect in the upcoming season. This time they gave three names instead: THATCHER, SMITH, and SHERRINFORD.
(Spoiler: Sherrinford is typically the name of another of Sherlock’s brothers.)
– Things sound like they’re going to get even darker in season 4. Amanda Abbington said this series is by far “the darkest that Steven and Mark have written.” Cumberbatch also commented on the “sheer ballsiness” of what’s to come, saying, “It’s a genuine emotional rollercoaster this season, but there are some great jokes.”
– Characters will definitely evolve in some ways, but relapse in others. Cumberbatch admitted that Sherlock was addicted to his work and that when there’s no work, he’s back to being addicted to drugs. “We’ll see how that plays out in season 4.”
– After announcing she’s with child in season 3, Mary will still be pregnant when the fourth season begins. However, the baby itself will be featured at some point in the next two episodes. (Note that Abbington kept saying “she” instead of “he” when referring to the baby.)
– You may have seen some paparazzi photos recently of Sherlock with a dog. They wouldn’t give context to the scene, but did say it was a bloodhound that was a terrible actor and refused to move. Moffat and Gatiss ended up rewriting the scene on the spot to explain why the dog wasn’t cooperating.
– The Victorian Christmas Special was first episode of the series that Moffat and Gatiss wrote together, which they did again in the fourth season.
– When asked how they manage to keep the series feeling fresh, the creators pointed out that “we just don’t make that many” on purpose. As for the pressure they always get from fans to do more, Moffat yelled, “Guy Ritchie’s only made two Sherlock movies and nobody gives him crap!”
– When asked again about a Doctor Who-Sherlock crossover, Moffat said that Donald Trump was actually responsible for blocking it from happening. That prompted Cumberbatch to do an amazing impression of Donald Trump debating over whether or not Doctor Who or Sherlock was the better series.
– Someone asked Amanda Abbington if she was Watson, would she have read Mary’s fille? “Oh yeah, absolutely.” (Moffat joked that Mary’s file was actually “full of cat videos and pictures of puppies.”) Abbington also admitted that she had no idea about Mary’s twist until getting the script for the third episode. She immediately knew fans were going to hate her, but hoped they would come around.
– Don’t expect any more time jumping. Moffat confirmed that the Christmas Special was the only episode they plan on doing in the past. Although Gatiss enjoyed pointing out that there’s a line Victorian Sherlock has, calling the modern show “my vision of the future,” which could mean that the entire series is actually just a fever dream of a Victorian-era Sherlock. (Cue “oohs” and “aahs” from the audience.)
– When asked about future seasons, the creators said they have no definitive answer but would love to keep making them if they can. Although Moffat was sure to point out: “Why is everyone assuming anyone survives series 4?”
– Cumberbatch finished by thanking fans for their unwavering support, getting admittedly corny by saying, “Love conquers all.” To which moderator Chris Hardwick correctly responded: “Tumblr just got pregnant.”