The film is directed by Harry Bradbeer from a screenplay by Jack Thorne that adapts the book series The Enola Holmes Mysteries by Nancy Springer.
[2] In addition to Brown, Henry Cavill, Louis Partridge, Susie Wokoma, Adeel Akhtar, and Helena Bonham Carter reprise their supporting roles, while David Thewlis and Sharon Duncan-Brewster join the cast.
Bessie takes Enola to the match factory, which is experiencing a deadly typhus epidemic, and encounters Mae, who worked alongside the sisters.
Enola discovers a piece of sheet music in Mae's dress but is interrupted by Superintendent Grail who accuses her of murder.
Enola meets Tewkesbury, who teaches her how to dance so she can find an opportunity to get closer to William Lyon, the son of the match factory's owner and Sarah's lover.
While visiting Tewkesbury, Enola realizes that Sarah is Cicely and that she, Mae, and William had discovered that white phosphorus, not typhus, was killing the workers and were planning to expose it.
He burns the evidence of the dealings and attempts to have Sarah arrested, but Sherlock and Enola deduce that Mira Troy is Moriarty and is responsible for the blackmail and murder.
Sarah, Bessie, and Enola inform the factory's match girls of the events and convince them to strike, McIntyre is arrested with Tewkesbury's help, and Moriarty escapes police custody.
In September 2020, co-producer and star Millie Bobby Brown and director Harry Bradbeer acknowledged their intentions to develop a sequel to Enola Holmes.
[7][8] Brown was reportedly paid $10 million for her role,[9] making it the highest upfront salary for an actor under the age of 20 as of the release of the film.
"[17] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 64 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
Gyarkye praises the meticulous production and costume design but is critical of the narrative as "The 1888 match girl strike, which was a process of community building, a focused effort on we, gets repackaged as a lesson in one voice leading the masses.
Netflix Films chairman Scott Stuber said the streamer is very proud of their "homegrown star" Millie Bobby Brown, and they are excited to continue telling Enola's story.