The Forgotten 10% Sherlock Holmes Disaster That Was Disowned by Its Own Star Finds New Streaming Home

On paper, it must’ve sounded like a home run. Audiences adored Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, especially when they were in the same movie, and the BBC’s Sherlock series had just ended its zeitgeist-capturing run. But the movie Holmes & Watson emerged as one of the biggest studio disasters in recent memory. Released in 2018, the film united the two comedy stars, but crucially, without their frequent collaborator, director Adam McKay, at the helm. The result was a critical and commercial trainwreck, which you can experience for yourself in October when it heads to the Tubi streaming service.

Holmes & Watson was based on Arthur Conan Doyle‘s iconic character — the property is in public domain now — but it retained little of what made him so beloved across generations. The film was directed by Etan Coen, who, at the time, was best known as one of the writers of Tropic Thunder, and the director of Get Hard — a cringe comedy starring Ferrell and Kevin Hart in one of his early starring roles. Holmes & Watson was infamously not screened for the press ahead of release – Roger Ebert would’ve given it his “wagging finger of shame” — and was subsequently panned. There were also reports of audiences walking out of screenings.

It holds a 10% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics’ consensus reads, “The lowest and vilest alleys in London do not present a more dreadful record of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson than does Holmes and Watson.” Holmes & Watson featured quite an impressive supporting cast, including Rebecca Hall, Kelly Macdonald, Steve Coogan, Hugh Laurie, a young Bella Ramsey, and Ralph Fiennes as the villainous James Moriarty.

Sherlock Holmes Will Return

It was Coogan who mocked the film a year after its release, at an event in England. “In 20 years’ time, when all the dust has settled and people are able to look at that film objectively, they’ll still think it’s shit,” he said. Holmes & Watson earned several nominations at the Golden Raspberry Awards, and was reportedly rejected by Netflix when Sony tried to offload it. Perhaps its availability on Tubi beginning October 1 might change that. Alternatively, fans can continue to hold out hope for the long-delayed third installment in the Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law Sherlock Holmes series, or they can wait for Guy Ritchie‘s Young Sherlock show. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.