THE GAME IS ON IN “SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHADOWS”

Robert Downey Jr. reprises his role as the world’s most famous detective, Sherlock Holmes, and Jude Law returns as his friend and colleague, Dr. Watson, in Warner Bros.’ new action-adventure “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.”

Sherlock Holmes has always been the smartest man in the room…until now.  There is a new criminal mastermind at large—Professor James Moriarty (Jared Harris)—and not only is he Holmes’ intellectual equal, but his capacity for evil, coupled with a complete lack of conscience, may give him an advantage over the renowned detective.

Filmmaker Guy Ritchie returned to direct “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows,” the follow-up to the smash hit “Sherlock Holmes.”  The sequel also reunited producers Joel Silver, Lionel Wigram, Susan Downey and Dan Lin.  Bruce Berman and Steve Clark-Hall served as executive producers.

In her first English-speaking role, Swedish actress Noomi Rapace, who gained international attention in the Swedish film “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” plays a mysterious Gypsy named Sim, who becomes allied with Holmes and Watson in their quest to stop Moriarty.  Jared Harris (TV’s “Mad Men,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”) joins the cast as the notorious Professor Moriarty.  Stephen Fry (“Alice in Wonderland,” “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”) plays Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock’s decidedly eccentric older brother.

Returning from the first film, the cast also includes Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler; Kelly Reilly as Watson’s bride, Mary Morstan; Eddie Marsan as Inspector Lestrade; and Geraldine James as Holmes’s long-suffering landlady, Mrs. Hudson.

“Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” was written by Michele Mulroney & Kieran Mulroney.  Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson were created by the late Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and appear in stories and novels by him.

Ritchie once again collaborated with the behind-the-scenes team from the first movie, including director of photography Philippe Rousselot, production designer Sarah Greenwood, editor James Herbert, costume designer Jenny Beavan, and composer Hans Zimmer.

            “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.