What is it that so fascinates us about Sherlock Holmes that he lives on nearly 100 years after Sir Arthur Conan Doyle stopped writing about him? The brilliant consulting detective with a predilection for drugs and the violin – and puzzles has been the central character in post-Conan Doyle novel, multiple film and television series over the years. Still, we continue to be intrigued, and Rob Doherty introduces us to yet another side of Sherlock in the new CBS hit series Elementary.
Veteran television executive producer-writer Doherty has worked on several successful series, including Star Trek: Voyager, Medium, and most recently, Ringer. Starring Jonny Lee Miller (Eli Stone, Trainspotting), Elementary is one of the top rated scripted series on television this season.
Doherty and I spoke at length the other day, about his version of Sherlock Holmes, and how it differs from than anything else Holmesian out there. He teased a bit about this week’s episode (mild spoilers ahead), which guest stars Lisa Edelstein (House, M.D.), as well as several upcoming storylines.
With all the other Holmes franchises out there just now, I was a bit curious about why Doherty wanted to develop another one. Explaining that the idea originally came from Carl Beverly (Unforgettable, A Gifted Man), another executive producer on the series, he told me that the two of them had been trying to come up with a project to do together, something to which they were equally drawn. Beverly offered the idea of doing “Sherlock Holmes in New York City,” according to Doherty. “It never would have occurred to me to tackle Sherlock Holmes. I feel like it’s the kind of thing you need suggested to you.” He elaborated, “Conan Doyle was well over a century ahead of his time.” Building a “prototype,” the author created a character that “you see in so many other detectives in the cinema and on TV,” he said. Doherty loved the “idea of transporting this iconic British character to New York. I thought that was a great idea.” But he also wondered about where to go from there? Where to take the idea, and make it more than a gimmick? “It can’t just be about Sherlock in New York,” Doherty continued. “That feels like that’s one really great element, but what else can we do?”
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Article comments
1 - Lucy H.
Great interview, thanks. I was hoping that "M" episode title that we saw in a photo the staff tweeted meant Moriarty was coming up. Looking forward to that.
2 - barbara barnett
Thanks Lucy! I'm guessing that's the "M" episode :)
3 - Lucy H.
By the way, I heard you say the other day that you're watching Eli Stone but it's a little too sweet for your taste. ... I can relate, although I do think it was quite an admirable show and a nice attempt to do some innovative things.
For anybody who's curious about the range of JLM's acting skills and the depth of his emotional reserves (and if you can stand BBC costume dramas), I recommend the distinctly non-sweet BBC two-part mini-series Byron. Not the best written thing in the world, but available on Netflix and extremely well acted, by Miller especially, but also by the rest of an amazing cast that includes Vanessa Redgrave, Natasha Little and Philip Glenister.
4 - barbara barnett
I'm enjoying Eli Stone very much (sweet as it is). JLM is quite good. I really enjoyed him Plunkett and Macleane as well (a bit bizarre of a movie, but with the benefit of putting him together with one of very favorite actors, Robert Carlyle) ;)
5 - Lucy H.
I really like RC as well. It was nice to see him get such a cool show as Once Upon a Time -- and I think he's great in it.
I find myself recommending Plunkett and Macleane when somebody asks me if I can think of anything that's just silly, escapist fun. Liv Tyler aside, the cast there can't be beat, and I think the Hogarth-meets-MTV approach actually works great for the story. Never could figure out why it got such terrible reviews. RC and JLM may have had some fun making it, at least, I'm guessing, though, doing a lot of improvising and such. I seem to remember an interview in which RC said that he wondered where his and JLM's writing credits were for P&M. They're both pretty funny guys.
6 - Resa Haile
Just a note to say that it hasn't actually been a hundred years since Doyle stopped writing the Holmes story; the last one was published in the *Strand* magazine in 1927. Very interesting interview, though.
7 - Resa Haile
I meant "the Holmes stories," although "the Holmes story" makes Watson's tales sound like one long biography, which, in a sense, they were.
8 - barbara barnett
Point taken Resa. I'll make that correction.
Lucy--just posted my review of Carlyle's new movie--and an interview with the director (he talks alot about RC's improvising ;))
The more I see of JLM, the more I like him. Plunkett & Macleane is just a great lot of fun!
9 - Josh Porter
Thanks Resa for the correction. I am working on my school project about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Your comment definitely saved me from a lot of embarrassment.
You are the best!