The film is directed by Guy Ritchie and produced by Dan Lin, Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram and Susan Downey.

Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law reprise their roles as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson, respectively, alongside Noomi Rapace as Madame Simza "Sim" Heron, Jared Harris as Professor Moriarty, Stephen Fry as Mycroft Holmes, Kelly Reilly as Mary Morstan, Eddie Marsan as Inspector Lestrade, William Houston as Constable Clark and Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler.

Although the film follows an original premise, it incorporates more closely elements of Conan Doyle's short stories, including "The Final Problem" and "The Adventure of the Empty House".

[5] In the film, Holmes and Watson travel across Europe with a Romani fortune-teller to foil an intricate plot by the cunning Professor Moriarty to instigate a major European conflict.

[6] Shortly after the events of the first movie, Irene Adler delivers a package to Dr. Hoffmanstahl, his payment for completing a recent surgery, while he hands her a letter.

Sherlock Holmes takes the letter and places the bomb in a sarcophagus to explode, while Adler and Hoffmanstahl escape.

Holmes discloses to Dr. John Watson at 221B Baker Street that he has connected seemingly unrelated murders, terrorist attacks, and business acquisitions to Moriarty.

The bomb was a cover for the assassination of Alfred Meinhard by Sebastian Moran, expert sharpshooter and henchman to Professor Moriarty.

Holmes reveals that, while being tortured by Moriarty, he replaced the professor's personal diary that contained his plans and financing with a duplicate.

After the success of the 2009 film Sherlock Holmes, a sequel was fast-tracked by Warner Bros. with director Guy Ritchie dropping out of an adaptation of Lobo and Robert Downey Jr. leaving Cowboys & Aliens.

[11] The film, then under the working title of Sherlock Holmes 2, was reported to be influenced by Conan Doyle's "The Final Problem".

[14] The production also filmed at several locations in Kent including Fort Amherst, Knole and The Historic Dockyard Chatham.

In addition to featuring existing works by Johann Strauss II, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ennio Morricone, and Franz Schubert, Zimmer included elements from authentic Romani music.

Deeply impressed, Zimmer arranged for 13 of the local musicians — with their personal violins and accordions — to join him in Vienna at a studio for a recording session.

It was reported a portion of proceeds from the soundtrack would be given to the impoverished Romani villages to help pay for necessities, such as water and heat.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is a good yarn thanks to its well-matched leading men but overall stumbles duplicating the well-oiled thrills of the original.

[44] James Berardinelli gave the film three stars out of four, writing, "A Game of Shadows is a stronger, better-realized movie that builds upon the strengths of the original and jettisons some of the weaknesses.

Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal felt "she vanishes all too soon in this overproduced, self-enchanted sequel, and so does the spirit of bright invention that made the previous film such a pleasant surprise.

"[48] Scott Mendelson of The Huffington Post remarked that she "exhibits far more personality and roguish charm in her few moments here than she did in all of the previous film.

While I didn't mind the position the character occupied in the narrative of the last movie, Rachel McAdams' Adler never meshed well with this particular Holmes.

[55] In 2011, Warner Bros. Pictures announced the first draft for Sherlock Holmes 3 was being written by screenwriter Drew Pearce;[59] he was later replaced by Justin Haythe.

[64] In 2016, Downey claimed the film would begin shooting later in the year,[65] but the same month, it was revealed that James Coyne was hired to rewrite the script.

[67] Warner Bros. stated in 2018 that the third film was scheduled for release on December 25, 2020, with Downey, Law and Anderson reprising their roles and Chris Brancato writing the script.

[68] In 2019, the release date was pushed to December 22, 2021,[69] and it was announced that Ritchie would be replaced by Dexter Fletcher as the film's director.

[71] Fletcher said in 2021 that the film was delayed indefinitely due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, stating, "We started going and then Covid hit, and they were like, 'Look we're going to stand it down and Robert has got something else he wants to do'...These things are so big that you don't wanna just chisel them into something...

Team Downey is working on installments including additional films, spin-offs, television series for HBO Max, and other media in a shared universe.