Martin Freeman has admitted that working on Sherlock Series 4 wasn’t as fun as previous seasons of the show, due to pressure from fans.
Freeman, who plays John Watson in the acclaimed drama (written by Doctor Who‘s Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss), said:
“Sherlock became the animal that it became immediately. Whereas even with The Office, it was a slow burn. But Sherlock was frankly notably high quality from the outset. And when you start [that high] it’s pretty hard to maintain that. Being in that show, it is a mini-Beatles thing. People’s expectations; some of it’s not fun anymore. It’s not a thing to be enjoyed, it’s a thing of: ‘you better [CENSORED] do this, otherwise, you’re a [CENSORED!]’ That’s not fun anymore.”
Martin (Black Panther) caused a bit of a stir when he said this, but it’s an understandable line of reasoning. Sherlock became such a success, it’s impossible to live up to everyone’s expectations.
The programme is, for now, on hiatus, and we don’t know when it’ll be back – certainly it’ll be a few years before showing up in the schedules again. Martin said:
“I think after Series 4, [it] felt like a pause. I think we felt we’d done it for a bit now. And part of it, speaking for myself is [due to] the reception of it.”
Series 4, which comprised of The Six Thatchers, The Lying Detective, and The Final Problem, was screened on BBC1 in January 2017 and each episode attracted 9 to 11 million viewers.
Is it a good move for Sherlock to take a break? When would be an ideal time for its return? Or is it best left as it is?
