‘Hobbit’ star Martin Freeman keeps comedy out of Watson
BBC ONE’s hit show Sherlock is back with its third season and star Martin Freeman discussed playing Dr. Watson and not drifting into comedy.
Speaking to the show’s co-creator co-creator Mark Gatiss in the Radio Times, Freeman said that he doesn’t want to play Dr John Watson in an overly comedic way.
“As an actor,” he said. “You know there are things you get asked to do that you do quite well, with less effort. Although there’s an inherent light-heartedness to Sherlock, I slightly err towards not doing the comedy.”
Even if he focuses, Freeman confesses that he may still give Watson a comedic flavor.
“Sometimes I realize even when I think I’m being dead straight, I look back and still think I’m mugging!”
“But what I love about our John Watson is that even though there is humor in him, it’s a straight part, and it’s a straight program. No one is a buffoon in it, and what I really like about it is that it’s writing for grown-ups, where you’re not having to cheat the audience.
“I’m purely trying to play this part the way I approach everything, which is to be truthful. I was trying to make Watson a feasible soldier, a feasible doctor. I wanted to give him a strength and a vulnerability.”
Check out the top Sherlock stories on The Dispatch HERE
Sherlock premieres in the U.K. on January 1st and in the U.S. on January 19th.
