Update: ‘Sherlock’ Producer Warns CBS: We Will Protect Our Series (Legally)
CBS is looking to bring even more Sherlock Homes to the entertainment industry by announcing today that they have ordered pilot for Elementary, a modern-day take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic Sherlock Holmes cases by former Medium producer and writer, Robert Doherty.
This series, which will also have A Gifted Man and Unforgettable executive producers Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly serving as producers, would mark the second Sherlock Holmes-based series currently on television.
In 2010, the BBC and PBS premiered Sherlock, which, similar to CBS’ Elementary, is a modern-day telling of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes and his chronicler Dr. Watson. The show stars Benedict Cumberbatch (Star Trek 2) and Martin Freeman (The Hobbit), respectively.
Created by Doctor Who executive producer Stephen Moffat and The League of Gentleman star Mark Gatiss, Sherlock just completed its second season in the UK and went on to win a BAFTA for Best Drama Series, Best Editing and Best Support Actor for Freeman.
Despite the increased demand for both Cumberbatch and Freeman in Hollywood, both actors are expected to return for a third season of Sherlock in 2013.
With CBS ordering a pilot that’s thematically similar to Sherlock, one has to question what exactly CBS’ intentions are for their potential new series – and whether or not the world of entertainment already has its fill of Holmes-based projects.
On top of the possibility that television will have two Sherlock Holmes series, there are always the Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes films with Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law waiting on cable – not to mention, Sherlock Holmes 3 expected in theaters in late 2013.
While there certainly is the potential for an oversaturation of Sherlock Homes, it appears that CBS may not only be trying to benefit from the financial success of Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, but also benefit from the critical acclaim and word of mouth that Sherlock is receiving.
Since Sherlock and Richie’s film versions only come around everyone other year, one could say that CBS has an entire year of Sherlock Holmes to themselves – which would either allow Elementary to differentiate itself… or to potentially ruin it for the other, more successful, iterations of Holmes, by leaving a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.
I suppose we’ll have to wait and see which one it is.
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Expect to hear CBS’ decision on Elementary in May. Sherlock season 2 also premieres May 2012 on PBS.
Follow Anthony on Twitter @anthonyocasio
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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CBS is going to bust the shocks jumping on the bandwagon so hard….
is this a joke?
As much of a joke as the biopic of Liz Taylor & Richard Burton for the Lifetime network; why is it a joke, you ask?
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/lindsay-lohan-elizabeth-taylor-lifetime-movie-279840
How can you possibly say ‘the BBC and PBS premiered Sherlock, which, similar to CBS’ Elementary’? As Sherlock was here first then surely Elementary is similair to Sherlock not the other way around. Once again a US network is going to fail and basterdize a brilliant show just as they did with Coupling, The Vicar of Dibley (remember that one? No, you wouldn’t because it was so piss poor it never even made the cut), Red Dwarf, The IT Crowd, Absolutely Fabulous, Life On Mars, Prime Suspect, Spaced, not to mention that abortion that was originally a UK cult classic Torchwood. Yeah I said Torchwood. That show was loved throughout the UK until it was destroyed by Starz money. How truly aweful it had become.
I’m not against US shows, in fact my wife and I love Revenge, Alcatraz (that shows huge promise), The Mentalist, Terra Nova (please god let there be another season), Blue Bloods, Castle, Hawaii Five O, Home land and I could name a dozen more. The trouble is you can’t do UK tv so give it up. You don’t get our humour and never will. Appologies if i’ve upset anyone, it wasn’t my intention.
That’s inaccurate and very condescending to say, that we don’t get your humor and never will. If you look at the popularity of all of the shows you listed above, not to mention Monty Python, Black Adder, even Skins, in the US you’ll see that we do, actually. Not everyone, but enough people to make a television audience. The problems are one, the Nielson rating system is garbage and two, American producers and distributors don’t trust their audience to be intelligent enough to make these kinds of shows. But don’t say we don’t get it. We’re just as unimpressed and frustrated with crappy American remakes as anyone else, moreso because things are so rarely simulcast. We have to wait forever for shows like Sherlock to show up on Netflix. And BBC-A is mostly made up of Gordon Ramsay shows, Top Gear and reruns of the X-Files, which makes no damn sense at all. Useless.
Nope, I am an American and Chrispy is completely right. His list is evidence of Horrible Awful Painful versions of British shows which American networks have bastardized and destroyed (most notably for me Life on Mars). If the networks want to have a great version of Sherlock they should import the BBC version. I am sure the BBC would gladly sell them the rights to broadcast it here.
Reading SR has to open your eyes that the people in Hollywood are money hungry blood suckers hell bent on destroying anything even mildly good in the hunt for $. They have very few original ideas and if writing to the lowest I.Q. watcher is an option then they are on that train to advertising revenues. The BBC creates thought provoking deep and powerful programming, something US television has a hard time even thinking about.
The Sherlock movies are trash and I have no reason to doubt Elementary will be as well.
THAT is the point: The producers and other money-grubbers ruin the translations of the shows. It has nothing to with American audiences not understanding British humor. The greedy bastards simply play to the lowest common denominator (the “Jersey Shore” crowd), thus denying the rest of us the chance to experience the breadth and depth of the converted/retooled shows as they SHOULD (and very easily COULD) be.
Im tired of the brits acting as if Americans are so dumb and thats why we just dont get your humor. How condescending! Much of your beloved humor is little more than idiotic slap stick and fart jokes so I wouldn’t be too proud if I were you. This show is going to be made because Americans want a series with around ten episodes a year not 3. Its not about oh we have to dumb it down its about what our country expects in the way of a TV series. I have watched the BBC Sherlock and I am a fan but I dont think the show is perfect and I really dont understand how you or anyone could think it needs to be dumbed down. The show isnt exactly rocket science ya know! As far as us ripping you off I would say well look at House. House is a modern take on Sherlock Holmes and I see a lot of the dynamic in the BBC Sherlock. OF course Sherlock Holmes was created by a brit so in the end I guess you own it. Still id think youd feel flattered that other countries and cultures love this character so much. I think this hostility is probably more about the fear the the US Sherlock will be superior than it is about anything else.
Dirk, I’m not so sure that the reason people are concerned about an American Sherlock Holmes adaptation is a fear of superiority. Firstly, when you examine previous attempts by US networks to remake UK programming, as highlighted in other posts, the track record is not great. Secondly, it appears to be an attempt to cash in on a current trend from an advantageous position – US networks have the ability to produce, as you mention, many episodes in a ‘season’ and at a very quick turnaround. When you take both points, one has to agree that the remake could sour the Sherlock trend. People are protective of what they hold dear and Sherlock Holmes is something we in the UK do cherish, therefore it is understandable that we take this news with apprehension.
US networks should continue doing what they do best, creating compelling programming of their own that Americans can be proud of.
…on a side note, in my experience, Americans aren’t all ‘dumb’. I have found them to be bright, positive and engaging people – your media and inward education means, as a nation, the average American isn’t internationally aware. But these stereotypes, though, do exist, such as you have for us. I can assure you that we all don’t have bad teeth and we certainly aren’t all ‘smart’. I can, however, assure you that our humour is more than ‘idiotic slapstick and fart jokes’! We also laugh at phallic objects.
Dirk. You’ve demonstrated that you don’t understand British humour in your post. I’ve always suspected that, when British comedies gain a following in the US, most Americans are missing the more subtle humour and laughing at completely different things to British audiences. From your definition of British humour, I assume that you are unfamiliar with most British comedies made after the 1970s? Yes, sometimes there is elements of slapstick, and fart jokes are not unknown. But the difference between British comedy and American comedy is this: In American comedy, the fart IS the joke. The fart is the set-up and the punchline. In British comedy, it’s the reaction that is the joke. The fart is the set-up, the reaction is the punchline. The same goes for most slapstick elements. Another point is that you are probably only aware of the slapstick and toilet humour British comedies because they are the only ones that Americans like.
Chris,
Your fart analogy may very well be the best one I’ve ever heard to describe the difference between British and US sitcom comedy.
Vic
Chris I had no idea british farts had so many layers.
Rich I wish your fellow brits had half the class you show in your comments. I doubt in the US version stinks up the joint it will sour people toward the BBC’s Sherlock. If that is whats behind the hostility I think you can all relax.
Actually Steven Moffat was recently quoted as saying that the reason “Sherlock” woks so well is precisely the 3 episodes a season (remember the last 2 seasons were 2 years apart), you should probably look up shows that the UK has taken off of the USA and “britified” you may be able to come up with only one (America’s got Talent was aired before Britain’s got Talent but the show was originally pitched to UK networks who didn’t like the format) but the list of British shows stolen and Americanised is endless, we just cannot fathom why America seems to think it needs to remake brilliant British shows instead of showing the originals, perhaps you would care to enlighten us?
I do agree with Chrispy. Certainly in the case of Sherlock Holmes, it is a uniquely British creation and I feel is should be produced by the BBC. One of the reasons I enjoy “Sherlock” so much is that it feels authentic. I think the U.S. already has a modern day version (at least in part) of Sherlock Holmes in the form of “House”.
Dude…I think it’s fair to say the The Office worked out pretty well. 2005 Doctor Who was heavily inspired by Joss Whedon’s writing. I think the failure of the American Skins is not indicative of a humor barrier. Skins wasn’t that funny. They ruined everything about the show and it went much deeper dry wit. Being Human had little funding and again, there wasn’t much of a point to the remake. I’m having trouble thinking of all the other American remakes that have been disastrous but basically….
recently we’ve seen a surge in American re-makes of European entertainment, mostly Swedish films and British tv shows. None have been as good as the original. It’s because there was really no reason for the re-make in the first place. “Elemantry” seems likely to be another failure, because he BBC’s Sherlock was so well crafted.
also, you watch really sh*tty american shows.
I’d like to point out that House MD is also a Modern day telling of sherlock holmes, with a few twists to the story. One dosen’t need another holmes show. Sherlock is all we need and this era of good shows being “remade” well they’re originals are still on needs to come to an end. #LifeOnMars #Skinz #BeingHuman to an extent #TORCHWOOD,grate british shows that got lackluster US redo’s. This s**** must end. And God bless the Queen that the US won’t get it’s hooks into Doctor Who. Think how bad that would be. TARDIS disquised as a Port-o-loo… #BFA:TheOneDoctor
I for one have absolutely loved the SHERLOCK series. Without being to spoiler like I have to say that the Season 2 opener manages to top the Season one finale, something I wasn’t so sure it could do.
One thing I am curious about is the Season thing and how SHERLOCK is being labeled a show with seasons verses a mini-series? I haven’t seen all of season 2 yet but if memory servers correctly season 2 consists of only 3 stories and that is hardly enough to warrant a true television series season. Is this the new thing in TV, abbreviated seasons? I hope not. It was bad enough waiting for LOST in between seasons with its 6 months+ hiatus.
UK shows have series (what they call seasons) that can run from 6-22 episodes. 6 is common for sitcoms and 12 for dramas/chat shows/panel show. That being said, many times the episode order is tweaked to better serve the show.
Sherlock is 3 90-minute episodes (commercial free) per season, which equals out to 6 episodes of a typical US drama… or 3 feature films.
It’s all ultimately semantics. Mini-series are typically enclosed stories where the plot is concluded at the end. Torchwood: Miracle Day is a mini-series, but Doctor Who is not. Doctor Who technically used to be… but that’s for another time.
Hope that helps!
it’s 3 90mins episodes (an hour and a half), cut them up into 30mins (As Moffat wanted for the pilot) and you have 9 episodes, enough in the UK for a full season. It’s not classed as a mini-series particularly because it’s not in real terms!
BBCs Sherlock season 2 ep1 & 3 are two of the best things i’ve seen on t.v in a very long time.. so a another sherlock… imo… waste of time
I’ll probably watch the show on CBS but that won’t change the fact that the BBC’s version of Sherlock is by far going to be the better of the two. Any time we try to copy a program already created by the BBC, it stinks. There are, of course a few exceptions, All In the Family, comes to mind. A better idea is to have the BBC version play at about the same time as it does in the UK. Also, I have my DVD copy of Sherlock series 2 on its way from the UK. I have a region 2 player so I can get the best from them before it hits PBS.
Appologies for claiming you don’t get our humour, what I meant to say was your TV execs don’t get our humour and are in it purely for the money. American TV stations have brought us truly wonderful TV shows – 24 being probably one of my favourite shows of all time. I’m loving Once Upon A Time and Revenge at the moment also, truly well thought out storylines (which probably means they’ll be cancelled before too long). However, to produce an ‘updated’ take on the Sherlock Holmes story is pure theft. It’s been done by the BBC so why can’t your TV producers come up with something more original? How the hell can these people command such wages when they haven’t an original thought in their heads? It truly does boggle the mind.
Have a great weekend everyone.
Sherlock Holmes being updated is not an original idea, it has been around far longer than Cumberbatch’s Sherlock. Also, don’t bash something over race, it will demean your character. Everyone has their own humor, it’s not predetermined just because of where you are born.
When you’ve done something as good as it can be done such as BBC “Sherlock” it feels like an insult someone could think they could do something like it or as good, etc. And are the people doing it real Sherlock Holmes fans who know every story and every movie and as they have said doing this as a labor of love. When they did the first season they had no idea how it would go, they just knew they were doing something they cared about and everyone else cared about it – the actors and the crew and the great directors – amazing work from the cinemaphotographer! Many critics have said this could equal any “movie” out there.
There is a feeling the CBS show would be “ordinary”.
Also, “Sherlock” being shown on PBS has meant many people in America haven’t seen it. PBS doesn’t have ratings the way the networks have or many cable shows. Of course i know people who saw it through Netflix and of course there are DVD’s to rent or buy. Tho word of mouth has helped the show in America.
And then, tho there are good actors, Benedict Cumberbatch is a Great actor and makes Sherlock seems so real, so believable. The chemistry between he and Martin Freeman is also as good as it gets. It’s QUALITY! There is no dumbing down and there is a perception people watching it are intelligent and appreciate excellence.
They said the same thing about (Let the Right One In) and (The Gril with the Dragon Tattoo) and I think the American version of both were either just as good or better.
“While there certainly is the potential for an oversaturation of Sherlock Homes”
“Why is CBS ordering a modern-day Sherlock Homes”
Just pointing out a couple of spelling errors…
OK. I’m obviously lost. My ScreenRant Newsletter (it just arrived) linked to this page right after this paragraph:
“Fortunately, Sherlock executive producer Sue Vertue (and wife of co-creator Steven Moffat) isn’t staying quiet about CBS’s programming decision. Shedding some light on why CBS decided to move forward with their modern-day Sherlock Holmes pilot, as well reassuring fans that they’ll make sure Sherlock is in no way negatively impacted by Elementary, Vertue lays out the uphill battle that CBS will have if they decide to take their modern telling of Sherlock Holmes to series.”
Sounds like a fight to me, but no mention of it here.
So, where’s the beef?
I don’t think this will end well… I’m still going to watch it though.
I’m going to apologize for my country in advance, just in case it’s completely horrible.
Although I think I might watch it, despite my misgivings. Unless they do something REALLY stupid, like making Watson a woman. Then I might have to leave the country out of pure shame.
I hope they make Watson a black woman who’s an Afghan War veteran.
Lucy Lui is playing Watson. You have to give them credit for pushing the envelope.
Still, Sherlock is the best thing I’ve seen on tv in, well, maybe ever. Something just doesnt feel right about the US trying to remake it. I’m from the US btw.
The difference between the office and Sherlock Holmes is that one is based on an experience that everyone can relate to… I.e. working in an office. There are differences in cultures and this a US adaptation made sense.
Sherlock is strictly Brittish. It’s better to borrow themes and traits (mentalist, house, etc) rather than actually taking characters and story lines.
I HATE remakes for the most part. There are very, very few that are worthy of great praise, whether it be a series or a movie. One movie remake I loved is King Kong w/Naomi Watts. Kept to the original & added some great fill-ins. Most remakes though stink. I’ve noticed too, that, for instance, if Sherlock Holmes is to be done AGAIN, do it in the period it was originally written. Otherwise, it’s really just another “who-done-it, cop-type show that TV has been saturated w/for decades. So SICK of those types of shows. The only one really worth my time is “Cold Case”. Now there is “originality”!
noooooo actually just hit my head on the table reading the bit about CBS ruining BBC’s version please could someone sue them for copyright ;(
i’d just like to point out that i’m a brit and very much proud of it
I have so many words right now. /So/ many words. But all of them would break the rules. So I’m just going to sit here and glower at CBS. They make too many bad choices.
It’s not so much that CBS is making a modern day Sherlock Holmes that annoys me, but the timing is going to ruin it. With BBC’s ‘Sherlock’ being such a massive success with dedicated fans around the world, a lot of people are going to react negatively to ‘Elementary’ and may even hate it out of spite.
Even though personally I hate the idea of Sherlock being American, (simply because Sherlock Holmes has always been British), I wouldn’t mind so much if the producers at CBS didn’t simply rip off of BBC’s ‘Sherlock’.
I don’t mean to rant but this really really annoys me when they can’t be bothered to come up with original ideas, and instead make 2nd rate re-makes.
i worry for the actors who will be playing the parts !!
…and here again we have American arrogance. It isn’t enough that they’ve single handedly succeeded in the ‘dumbing down’ of North American television, now they wish to add insult to injury. Pitiful.
You do realize this is like the umpteenth time America has done a version for Sherlock? Not even the first time they’ve done him in modern times. Besides, not everything you guys produce is exactly golden television. You’ve had just as many stinkers along the way as well.