Sherlock Holmes (film)/Characters

The characters of the Sherlock Holmes 2009 film series.

Sherlock Holmes
""The game is afoot!"

Played By: Robert Downey, Jr."


 * Ambiguous Disorder: Asperger's?
 * Anti-Hero: Type III
 * Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny
 * Awesome By Analysis
 * Badass Bookworm
 * Badass Longcoat
 * Bash Brothers: with Watson.
 * Berserk Button: Do not harm Irene or Watson or Mary, just don't.
 * Bunny Ears Lawyer
 * Combat Pragmatist
 * Crazy Jealous Guy
 * Crazy Prepared
 * Cursed with Awesome: Sherlock's eponymous Sherlock Scan apparently has no figurative off-switch as shown in the restaurant scene in the first movie, and is explicitly called a curse by him late into the second.
 * Dating Catwoman
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Extreme Omnivore: Is shown in the sequel happily drinking formaldehyde despite Watson pointing out it's highly toxic.
 * Gentleman Adventurer
 * Great Detective: Since he is Sherlock Holmes, it's elementary.
 * Guile Hero
 * Large Ham
 * Manipulative Bastard: A nice guy version.
 * Hyper Awareness
 * Master of Disguise
 * Perma Stubble
 * Private Detective
 * Sherlock Scan
 * Spirited Competitor
 * The Spock

Dr John Watson
""I’ve been going over my notes of our exploits over the past seven months. Would you like to hear my conclusions? …I am psychologically disturbed."

Played By: Jude Law"


 * Badass Bookworm
 * Badass Longcoat
 * Badass Mustache
 * Bash Brothers: with Holmes.
 * Berserk Button: Don't harm or threaten his fiancee/wife Mary. Don't harm or threaten Sherlock Holmes. This is your last warning.
 * Harming women in general tends to piss him off.
 * Combat Medic
 * Combat Pragmatist: Even more so than Holmes.
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * The Gambling Addict
 * Genre Savvy
 * Gentleman Adventurer
 * Living Emotional Crutch
 * The Watson

Irene Adler
""I’ve never been in over my head."

Played By: Rachel McAdams"


 * Action Girl
 * Bifauxnen
 * Classy Cat Burglar
 * Dark Chick
 * Femme Fatale
 * Hot Chick in a Badass Suit
 * Ms. Fanservice
 * The Muse
 * Promoted to Love Interest
 * Trigger Happy
 * Promoted to Love Interest
 * Trigger Happy
 * Trigger Happy

Inspector Lestrade
""In another life, Mr. Holmes, you would have made a excellent criminal."

Played By: Eddie Marsan"


 * Captain Obvious
 * Good Cop Incompetent Cop
 * Inspector Lestrade
 * Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right

Mary Morstan
""It does seem a little far-fetched, though. Making all these grand assumptions based on such tiny details..."

Played By: Kelly Reilly"


 * Action Girl
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Took a Level In Badass

Mrs Hudson
""What will I do when you leave, doctor? He'll bring the whole house down!"

Played By: Geraldine James"


 * Servile Snarker

Lord Henry Blackwood
""You and I are bound together on a journey that will twist the very fabric of nature."

Played By: Mark Strong"


 * The Antichrist
 * Aristocrats Are Evil
 * Badass Longcoat
 * Big Bad: of the first film.
 * Cane Fu
 * Dark Messiah
 * Diabolical Mastermind
 * Evil Brit
 * Evil Sorcerer:.
 * Hannibal Lecture
 * Jack the Ripper: It's implied he could be him or at least have something in common.
 * Manipulative Bastard
 * Serial Killer: Subverted actually. It' more like a case of Serial Killings, Specific Target.
 * Soft Spoken Sadist
 * Soft Spoken Sadist

Lord Coward
""How terrible is wisdom, when it brings no profit to the wise."

Played By: Hans Matheson"


 * Dirty Coward
 * The Dragon
 * Evil Brit
 * Meaningful Name: I'm surprised they didn't call Lord Blackwood Lord Jerkass.
 * Smug Snake
 * Utopia Justifies the Means

Sir Thomas Rotheram
"Played By: James Fox"



Dredger
""Cours, petit lapin, cours."

Played By: Robert Maillet"


 * Affably Evil
 * Badass Mustache
 * The Brute
 * Catch Phrase: ARGH!
 * Evil Sounds Deep
 * French Jerk
 * Giant Mook
 * Lightning Bruiser

Ambassador John Standish
"Played By: William Hope"


 * Berserk Button: Threatening America.

Professor James Moriarty
""Come now, you really think you're the only one who can play this game?"

Played By: Jared Harris"


 * Ax Crazy: A rare cold-blooded one.
 * Awesomeness By Analysis
 * Badass Bookworm: Of the pure evil kind.
 * Beard of Evil
 * Berserk Button: Don't question this nutcase's sanity.
 * Big Bad
 * The Chessmaster
 * Combat Pragmatist
 * Complexity Addiction
 * Dangerously Genre Savvy
 * Diabolical Mastermind
 * Evil Brit
 * Evil Counterpart: To Holmes himself. It's even mentioned in the first by movie by Adler.
 * Evil Teacher
 * Faux Affably Evil
 * For the Evulz
 * Genius Bruiser
 * The Man Behind the Man
 * Manipulative Bastard
 * Narcissist
 * The Sociopath
 * Soft Spoken Sadist
 * Sore Loser:
 * Villain with Good Publicity
 * Villainous Breakdown: An extremely subtle one, more to do with his actions than any expression or anger. His rage is restrained, but he makes the decision to go all-out on Holmes. And then that goes out the window after
 * Villains Out Shopping
 * Wicked Cultured
 * Worthy Opponent: Holmes admits respect but can barely hide the great hate he feels towards him.
 * You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: To the point where it's odd that anyone agrees to work with him. You have to wonder what Moran's pension plan is.
 * Well, actually seems like Moran he's the only one allies Moriarty really cares and treat with respect.
 * You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: To the point where it's odd that anyone agrees to work with him. You have to wonder what Moran's pension plan is.
 * Well, actually seems like Moran he's the only one allies Moriarty really cares and treat with respect.

Madame Simza Heron
"Played By: Noomi Rapace"


 * Action Girl
 * Bomb-Throwing Anarchists
 * Hot Gypsy Woman
 * Roma
 * Skyward Scream
 * She Cleans Up Nicely

Mycroft Holmes
""Good evening, Mrs Watson. I'm the other Holmes."

Played By: Stephen Fry"


 * Aloof Big Brother
 * Ambiguously Gay: Finds nothing wrong with walking around naked with his butler and other men, but is taken aback at the notion that women (i.e. Mary) are creatures to be admired. He even tries to hit on her using this logic, but it fails spectacularly.
 * Consider the actor portraying him, though.
 * Brilliant but Lazy
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Gentle Giant
 * Naked People Are Funny

Colonel Sebastian Moran
"Played By: Paul Anderson"


 * Cold Sniper
 * YMMV. He seems to actively enjoy Hunting the Most Dangerous Game.
 * The Dragon
 * Evil Counterpart: to Watson.
 * Kick the Dog: He shoots a random German soldier who happened to be standing in front of Watson.
 * My Master, Right or Wrong
 * Psycho for Hire
 * Wicked Cultured: He was looking forward to the opera.
 * Wicked Cultured: He was looking forward to the opera.