Robert Downey Ready for Sherlock Holmes 3

It's been five years since Robert Downey, Jr., last played the role of Sherlock Holmes, but the actor is ready to give it a go. The problem is that he's a very busy man, with all the blockbuster movies he's a part of, and fitting a new Holmes movie into his schedule is a monumental challenge. That said, Downey is hoping that the third film in his Holmes franchise could begin production before the end of 2016.

Downey told Shortlist that he's currently working with director Guy Ritchie, who was at the helm of both 2009's Sherlock Holmes and 2011's Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, on "some preliminary stuff" for a third Holmes film and that the pair hope to have the project ready for shooting before the year is out.

Downey's original Holmes film was one of the top 10 films of 2009, and A Game of Shadows also made it into the top 10 of 2011. The Downey Holmes films are much more action-oriented and much less cerebral than other takes on the detective created by Arthur Conan Doyle, and since Downey last played the role, Benedict Cumberbatch's Holmes in the BBC TV series Sherlock has emerged as an immensely popular version of the classic role.