We haven’t seen a new adventure for Robert Downey Jr.’s Sherlock in almost a decade now – he’s been busy working on some superhero franchise or whatever – but Sherlock Holmes 3 is now definitely on its way. Jude Law will likewise be back as Doctor Watson but this time around, Guy Ritchie won’t be on hand to direct, after helming both 2009’s Sherlock Holmes and 2011’s A Game of Shadows. 

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Taking over from him is Rocketman‘s Dexter Fletcher and while speaking with Collider, he opened up about replacing Ritchie, touching on how he’ll honor what his predecessor did with the franchise but also give it his own spin.

“I think that’s inevitable, isn’t it? Whenever you have different filmmakers. I’m not gonna ignore what he did so brilliantly before. There will be an element of that, but I will also bring my own voice to it as well and it will be something sort of different. And I suppose that’s the idea of bringing in somebody new. We’ll see what happens.”

Of course, Fletcher’s a natural fit for SH3 seeing as he’s an old friend of Ritchie’s – he starred in the filmmaker’s breakout feature, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. He went on to reveal that he’s chatted with his pal about doing the next Sherlock Holmes as well, with Ritchie apparently being very supportive.

“He’s very generous about it. He’s like, ‘You’re going to have a great time with it. Go and have a great time.’ It’ll be exciting. Robert [Downey Jr.] is amazing. Jude [Law} is fantastic. There’s an incredible cast there and a great opportunity. He’s not around to do it. He’s off doing what he’s doing. So it feels good to be part of that. Guy and I go way back and he’s very generous. I think he sort of finds it rather fun that it’s me.”

Plot details have yet to be officially revealed, but one report’s claimed that the threequel will take Holmes and Watson to the Old West. Giving the movie a Western-flavor would be a smart idea, as it would really mark it out from other adaptations while also continuing the globe-trotting style of the previous film. Again, though, this hasn’t been confirmed as yet.

What we do know is that Sherlock Holmes 3 is scheduled for release in cinemas on December 21st, 2021. Don’t miss it.