Sherlock Holmes has been solved, rebooted, reimagined, re-deduced, and generally violin-ed into every possible corner of television over the years, so Fremantle and Archery Pictures are taking the rather sensible next step: giving the spotlight to his greatest nemesis.
‘Moriarty’ is a new contemporary crime drama in development from Archery Pictures and Fremantle, reimagining Professor James Moriarty as a professor of criminal psychology at Durham University who also happens to be the secret mastermind behind some of the most sophisticated crimes in the North of England. Which does make you wonder if his module feedback forms are unusually threatening.
The series, currently a working title, comes from writers Chris Cornwell (A Discovery of Witches) and Oliver Lansley (Flack, Where’s Wanda?), and is being described as a modern reinvention of the crime procedural, built around one of detective fiction’s most famous villains.
In this version, Moriarty has built an underground criminal empire while maintaining his respectable academic front. However, when a rival criminal begins attacking that empire, he is forced into a rather deliciously twisted solution: joining the police as a consultant. By using the law as a weapon, Moriarty aims to dismantle his new enemy from the inside, all while keeping his true identity hidden from the officers around him.
Naturally, there is a complication. Moriarty is paired with Detective Imogen Burrows, a stoic Yorkshire detective, and the two form a fearsome investigative team. But as they begin working together, Moriarty realises the rival criminal faction might not be the biggest danger after all. The real threat could be Imogen’s growing suspicion that her brilliant new consultant is not quite what he appears to be.
“We are thrilled to be working with Fremantle to bring to life the original and character-driven spin-off from the Sherlock Holmes universe, that Chris Cornwell has created,” said Kris Thykier, founder of Archery Pictures. “‘Moriarty’ (w/t) will show audiences what it takes to be a criminal genius, combining genre thrills with a playful, dark, and thrilling dive into the psychology of villainy.”
Rebecca Dundon, SVP for scripted content at Fremantle, added: “We’ve been looking for a project to work with Archery on for a while, and when Kris brought this to us, we instantly saw huge potential for a commercial, returning franchise that brings to life one of the more elusive characters in the Sherlock world: Moriarty. It’s exciting to collaborate with Kris and the team at Archery to bring a premium, propulsive, contemporary drama to screen that will not only be clever and hooky, but also give us a fresh spin on the procedural crime format with an unconventionally brilliant protagonist at the heart who will constantly surprise and frustrate viewers in a highly entertaining manner!”
Archery Pictures will co-produce the drama with Fremantle, with Fremantle also handling global sales. Casting has not yet been announced, and there is currently no broadcaster or streamer attached.
Moriarty has, of course, been a popular figure on screen for decades, with memorable takes including Andrew Scott in the BBC’s ‘Sherlock’, Natalie Dormer in ‘Elementary’, and Jared Harris in Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. More recently, the wider Sherlock Holmes universe has continued to expand through projects such as Netflix’s Enola Holmes films, CBS drama Watson, and Prime Video’s Young Sherlock.
The rights situation around Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories has also opened the door for more reinventions, with the final stories entering the public domain in the US on Sunday, 1st January 2023. That means the detective, his allies, and his enemies are now very much available for new interpretations, and it seems Moriarty is next in line for a modern makeover.
‘Moriarty’ is currently classed as ‘in development’ so may, or may not, make it to series. We’ll let you know when we hear more!
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