Who Should Play Sherlock in CBS’ ‘Watson’? 10 Actors We’d Nominate
The new CBS medical drama Watson opens six months after the death of Sherlock Holmes at the hands of James Moriarty, as Morris Chestnut’s Dr. John Watson, Holmes’ partner in crime-solving, resumes his medical career as the head of a clinic treating rare disorders. The logline adds, however, that Watson’s old life “isn’t done with him,” since he and Moriarty are “set to write their own chapter of a story that has fascinated audiences for more than a century.”
Speaking of Watson’s old life, how much you wanna bet Sherlock Holmes isn’t actually dead in this new adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective stories? We’re so certain that twist is coming that we’re already dream-casting the role of the consulting detective.
In a Watson sneak peek shared by TVLine, Watson wakes up in a hospital and meets Shinwell Johnson (Ritchie Coster) — another character from Conan Doyle’s stories — who reveals Watson suffered a traumatic brain injury as he leapt over a waterfall in pursuit of James Moriarty and “Mr. Holmes.”
So we know Holmes is male in this story, but we don’t know much else. We only see the detective from a distance in the Watson trailer and thus can’t be sure he’s the tall, pale, black-haired, gray-eyed man from the books. And so we’re casting a wide net in the dream-casting below!
Hugh Laurie
Frankly, we’re surprised Laurie hasn’t already played Sherlock Holmes, though he played a very Holmesian character in House (which, like Watson, centers on a team investigating medical mysteries).
Laurence Fishburne
Fishburne, one of Chestnut’s Boyz n the Hood costars, has already played authoritative crime-solvers in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Hannibal, so we can easily see him playingSherlock.
Richard Armitage
Armitage is a veteran of Netflix’s Harlan Coben series, so he’s no stranger to mysteries. We think he’d fit right in at 221B Baker Street (or wherever Watson’s Holmes calls home).
Matthew Goode
A Goode man for the role! This Englishman has been charming audiences in everything from Downton Abbey to A Discovery of Witches, and we can picture him using Holmes’ keen powers of observation with a twinkle in his eye.
Harold Perrineau
Perrineau, a costar of Chestnut’s in the Best Man film series, has been delivering powerful performances for decades now, including his too-short Lost stint. He’d undoubtedly put his own stamp on the character.
Alexander Siddig
Siddig, an alum of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Gotham, is due for a return to network television. We think he’d be a dashing selection for Conan Doyle’s master of deduction.
Claes Bang
Bang has already played Count Dracula, so why not cast him in the part of another cunning, captivating character from classic literature? Besides, he looks like he could play a Sherlock who’d take on Moriarty in a tussle.
David Tennant
Tennant can go light, as he did in Doctor Who, or dark, as he did in Jessica Jones. So we’d love to see what he could do with a returned-from-the-dead Sherlock who might not relish his resurrection.
Esai Morales
He has played antagonist in everything from Ozark to Titans to the Mission: Impossible franchise, but Morales is compelling even when he’s breaking bad. For him, playing a charismatic Holmes would be, well, elementary.
Matt Bomer
Bomer is considerably younger than Chestnut, but if Watson is looking for a hunky Holmes who’d look great in a deerstalker cap, we certainly hope any White Collar revival wouldn’t get in the way of Bomer playing the detective.
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I could see (per their order of presentation) Perrineau, Tennant, or Morales. Let's remember that Doyle's Holmes isn't some kind of sociable, laughing/laughable glad-hander. (If anything, his affect seems to be that of a savant with Asperger's & a bit bipolar.) But yeah, it's just a sort of wish list, & probably won't mean anything.
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All good possibilities, we'll have to wait and see. I bet it is none of these.
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This is just a list of random actors.
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