Sherlock co-creator Mark Gatiss took to Twitter to share a sneak peek of season 4, which began filming earlier this month. The image shared shows Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays Sherlock, on set. The image doesn’t disclose much about the new season, but it does show Sherlock staring out of a window that appears to be at 221B Baker Street.
Back! #Sherlock pic.twitter.com/WFvpGpy3PV
— Mark Gatiss (@Markgatiss) April 11, 2016
Gatiss and co-creator Steven Moffat issued a press release about season 4 earlier in April. “Sherlock [season] four—here we go again!” they said. “Whatever else we do, wherever we all go, all roads lead back to Baker Street—and it always feels like coming home. Ghosts of the past are rising in the lives of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson bringing adventure, romance and terror in their wake.”
The most telling part of their statement was the final line: “This is the story we’ve been telling from the beginning. A story about to reach its climax...”
While this has led to speculation that season 4 will be the last season, there is an alternative option: the creators are talking about the Moriarty (Andrew Scott) story arch. In the season 3 finale, Moriarty made his return leaving fans confused about how the character could have survived. The one episode special earlier this year — The Abominable Bride — set the scene for solving the mystery behind Moriarty’s reappearance.
While viewers don’t know what is going on with Moriarty by the end of the special episode, they do learn that Moriarty is dead. Sherlock says it himself but seems to be onto the truth about how Moriarty’s presence is still around. "Of course Moriarty is dead," said Sherlock. "And I know exactly what he's going to do next."
Very little has been revealed about Season 4 but Masterpiece has noted that the fourth season “begins with the mercurial Sherlock Holmes, back once more on British soil as Doctor Watson (Martin Freeman) and his wife Mary (Amanda Abbington) prepare for their biggest challenge yet: becoming parents.”
As for the air date, The Independent reports that season 4 will air on New Year’s Day 2017. That said, the BBC has yet to reveal an official air date. At the 2016 TCA winter press tour, President and CEO of PBS Paula Kreger confirmed the fourth season will arrive next year. “We do have the next Sherlock announced, that is coming up about a year from now,” said Kerger to Zap2it.
