How Did Moffat Persuade Cumberbatch to Return to Sherlock?

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Having gone from relative celebrity and solid acclaim to national treasures in the space of three seasons, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman took some persuading to return to the show that made them household names, Sherlock.

Speaking to BBC News, Steven Moffat commented that he didn’t expect the show to go beyond three seasons: “They don’t need Sherlock anymore. So we had to persuade them to do it – which is fair enough.”

Since the shows launch in 2010, the pair’s meteoric rise – Martin Freeman, who already had a place in the nations heart with his turn as Tim in The Office, has since gone on to appear in The Hobbit trilogy and the acclaimed TV adaptation of the Coen Brothers none-more black comedy Fargo. While Benedict Cumberbatch has received an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of gifted computer science mathematician, Alan Turing and has also conquered the internet with his affable charm and willingness to photobomb.

Moffat added that he didn’t believe that he and co-writer/producer Mark Gatiss would be able to convince the pair to return for the Victorian-era set Christmas special, but he said the actors were: ‘very serious’ about the show: “They do love it very much,” he said.

Moffat and Cumberbatch are both set to appear and speak at the first-ever Sherlocked, a Sherlock fan convention at London’s ExCel Centre that kicks off Friday and runs until Sunday. Co-creator Mark Gatiss is also attending alongside Moriarty himself, Andrew Scott, and several other cast and crew members.

(Via Hollywood Reporter)

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