Those who have played Sherlock Holmes since 1893: Charles Brookfield - 1893 William Gillette - 1899-1929 - 1300 Performances over 30 yrs. Sherlock Holmes movie Baffled - 1900 Silent/Short - Max Goldberg John F. Preston - 1900 Charles Rice - 1904 Karoly Baumann - 1905 Maurice Costello - 1905 Viggo Larsen - 1908 Alwin NeuB - 1908, 1911, 1914 Otto Lagoni - 1910 Holger Rasmussen - 1911 Mack Sennett - 1911-1912 George Treville - 1912 Harry Benham - 1913 James Bragington - 1914 Francis Ford - 1914 H.A. Saintbury - 1916 Hugo Flink - 1917 Sam Robinson - 1918 Eille Norwood - 1921 Silent short movie - The Dying Detective Burt Lytell - 1921 Dennis Neillson-Terry - 1921 John Barrymore - 1922 Hamilton Deane - 1923-1932 Tod Slaughter - 1928, 1930 Richard Gordon - 1930-1933, 1936 Clive Brook - 1929/1930/1932 Arthur Wontner - 1931- 1937 - Movie Series Raymond Massey - 1931 Robert Rendel - 1931/1932 Reginald Owen - 1933 Felix Alymer - 1933 Louis Hector - 1934-1935, 1937 Bruno Guttner - 1937, 1939, 1942-1943 Orson Welles - 1938 Basil Rathbone - 1939-1946 Cedric Hardwick - 1945 Tom Conway - 1947 Howard Marion-Crawford - 1948 John Stanley - 1948-1949 Alan Napier - 1949 John Longden - 1951 Laidman Browne - 1951 Carleton Hobbs - 1952-1969 Ronald Howard - 1954 (39 episodes) Sir John Gielgud - 1954-1955 Peter Cushing - 1959, 1968, 1984 Christopher Lee - 1962, 1970, 1992 Douglas Wilmer - 1964 John Neville - 1965, 1970, 1978 Robert Stephens - 1970 Stewart Granger - 1972 John Cleese - 1973 Larry Hagman - 1974 Robert Powell - 1974 Rolf Becker - 1974 John Wood - 1974-1975 Leonard Nimoy - 1976 Kevin McCarthy - 1977 Roger Moore - 1976 Nicol Williamson - 1976 Christopher Plummer - 1977 Peter Cook - 1977 Paxton Whitehead - 1978 Geoffrey Whitehead - 1979-1980 Keith Mitchell - 1979 Charlton Heston - 1980 Frank Langella - 1980 Vasily Livanov - Russian TV - 1979-1981, 1983 & 1986 John Moffatt - 1981 Guy Henry - 1982 Tom Baker - 1982 Ian Richardson - 1983 Peter O’Toole - 1983 (animated TV films - Australian) Jeremy Brett - 1984-1994 Nicholas Rowe - 1984 Guy Rolfe - 1984 Dinsdale Landen - 1987 Tim Pigott-Smith - 1987 Anthony Higgins - 1987 Michael Pennington - 1987 Roger Rees - 1988 Ron Moody - 1988-1989 Clive Merrison - 1989-1998, 2002, 2004, 2008-2010 Edward Woodward - 1990 Simon Callow - 1990 Richard E. Grant 1992 Robert Powell - 1993 Patrick McNee - 1993 Anthony Higgins - 1993 1998-2019: John Gilbert - Episodes 1-18 Lawrence Albert - Episode 20 John Patrick Lowrie - Episodes 21-65 & 67-until Dennis Bateman - Episode 66 Jason Gray-Stanford - 1999-2001 - Animation for Kids Matt Frewer - 2000-2001 Joaquim de Almeida - 2001 Richard Roxburgh - 2002 James D’Arcy - 2002 Andrew Sachs - 2004 Rupert Everett - 2004 Jonathan Pryce - 2007 Javier Marzan - 2007 Roger Llewellyn - 2009 Ben Syder - 2010 Johnny Lee Miller - 2012-2019 Benjamin Lawlor - 2013 Igor Petrenko - Russian TV Series - 2013 Robert Downey Jr. 2009 & 2011 Benedict Cumberbatch - 2010-2016 Nicholas Briggs - 2010-2018 Christian Rode - 2010, 2014 Seamus Dever - 2014 Ian McKellen - 2015 Euan Morton - 2015 Gregory Wooddell - 2015 Paul Andrew Goldsmith - 2015-2016 Ewen Bremner - 2016 Jay Taylor - 2017-2018 Yuko Takeuchi - 2018 (HBO Asia - female ‘Holmes’) Orlando Wells - 2018 Samuel Tady - 2011, 2014, 2017-2018 (Tady Bros. Productions/on YTube) Johnny Depp - 2018 (animation) Will Ferrell - 2018 Nicholas Boulton - 2020 Henry Cavill - 2020 Ethan Bell - 2020 (Fan Film on RUclips) Ethan Thomas Jung - 2020 Fan Adv. (Vagabond Repertory Theater Company-RUclips) This list is not exhaustive. however, these are some of the many actors who have played Sherlock Holmes on stage, screen, radio and TV adaptations.
@Chaim Mendel : I started this journey of discovering the many actors who have played Sherlock Holmes in 2017-2018. I've researched many hours, and watched and listened to as many versions as I could find. The Holmes character has been not only performed in the US and England, but S. America, Germany and even Russia. No other character has attracted such an interest as Sherlock Holmes. I've listened to radio, audiobooks, TV versions and movies. I also have developed a list of Holmes Audiobooks, which have included pastiches written by Holmes fans. My search came to an end in 2021. I've added the additional names on this list.
Simply marvellous
Those who have played Sherlock Holmes since 1893:
Charles Brookfield - 1893
William Gillette - 1899-1929 - 1300 Performances over 30 yrs.
Sherlock Holmes movie Baffled - 1900 Silent/Short - Max Goldberg
John F. Preston - 1900
Charles Rice - 1904
Karoly Baumann - 1905
Maurice Costello - 1905
Viggo Larsen - 1908
Alwin NeuB - 1908, 1911, 1914
Otto Lagoni - 1910
Holger Rasmussen - 1911
Mack Sennett - 1911-1912
George Treville - 1912
Harry Benham - 1913
James Bragington - 1914
Francis Ford - 1914
H.A. Saintbury - 1916
Hugo Flink - 1917
Sam Robinson - 1918
Eille Norwood - 1921 Silent short movie - The Dying Detective
Burt Lytell - 1921
Dennis Neillson-Terry - 1921
John Barrymore - 1922
Hamilton Deane - 1923-1932
Tod Slaughter - 1928, 1930
Richard Gordon - 1930-1933, 1936
Clive Brook - 1929/1930/1932
Arthur Wontner - 1931- 1937 - Movie Series
Raymond Massey - 1931
Robert Rendel - 1931/1932
Reginald Owen - 1933
Felix Alymer - 1933
Louis Hector - 1934-1935, 1937
Bruno Guttner - 1937, 1939, 1942-1943
Orson Welles - 1938
Basil Rathbone - 1939-1946
Cedric Hardwick - 1945
Tom Conway - 1947
Howard Marion-Crawford - 1948
John Stanley - 1948-1949
Alan Napier - 1949
John Longden - 1951
Laidman Browne - 1951
Carleton Hobbs - 1952-1969
Ronald Howard - 1954 (39 episodes)
Sir John Gielgud - 1954-1955
Peter Cushing - 1959, 1968, 1984
Christopher Lee - 1962, 1970, 1992
Douglas Wilmer - 1964
John Neville - 1965, 1970, 1978
Robert Stephens - 1970
Stewart Granger - 1972
John Cleese - 1973
Larry Hagman - 1974
Robert Powell - 1974
Rolf Becker - 1974
John Wood - 1974-1975
Leonard Nimoy - 1976
Kevin McCarthy - 1977
Roger Moore - 1976
Nicol Williamson - 1976
Christopher Plummer - 1977
Peter Cook - 1977
Paxton Whitehead - 1978
Geoffrey Whitehead - 1979-1980
Keith Mitchell - 1979
Charlton Heston - 1980
Frank Langella - 1980
Vasily Livanov - Russian TV - 1979-1981, 1983 & 1986
John Moffatt - 1981
Guy Henry - 1982
Tom Baker - 1982
Ian Richardson - 1983
Peter O’Toole - 1983 (animated TV films - Australian)
Jeremy Brett - 1984-1994
Nicholas Rowe - 1984
Guy Rolfe - 1984
Dinsdale Landen - 1987
Tim Pigott-Smith - 1987
Anthony Higgins - 1987
Michael Pennington - 1987
Roger Rees - 1988
Ron Moody - 1988-1989
Clive Merrison - 1989-1998, 2002, 2004, 2008-2010
Edward Woodward - 1990
Simon Callow - 1990
Richard E. Grant 1992
Robert Powell - 1993
Patrick McNee - 1993
Anthony Higgins - 1993
1998-2019: John Gilbert - Episodes 1-18
Lawrence Albert - Episode 20
John Patrick Lowrie - Episodes 21-65 & 67-until
Dennis Bateman - Episode 66
Jason Gray-Stanford - 1999-2001 - Animation for Kids
Matt Frewer - 2000-2001
Joaquim de Almeida - 2001
Richard Roxburgh - 2002
James D’Arcy - 2002
Andrew Sachs - 2004
Rupert Everett - 2004
Jonathan Pryce - 2007
Javier Marzan - 2007
Roger Llewellyn - 2009
Ben Syder - 2010
Johnny Lee Miller - 2012-2019
Benjamin Lawlor - 2013
Igor Petrenko - Russian TV Series - 2013
Robert Downey Jr. 2009 & 2011
Benedict Cumberbatch - 2010-2016
Nicholas Briggs - 2010-2018
Christian Rode - 2010, 2014
Seamus Dever - 2014
Ian McKellen - 2015
Euan Morton - 2015
Gregory Wooddell - 2015
Paul Andrew Goldsmith - 2015-2016
Ewen Bremner - 2016
Jay Taylor - 2017-2018
Yuko Takeuchi - 2018 (HBO Asia - female ‘Holmes’)
Orlando Wells - 2018
Samuel Tady - 2011, 2014, 2017-2018 (Tady Bros. Productions/on YTube)
Johnny Depp - 2018 (animation)
Will Ferrell - 2018
Nicholas Boulton - 2020
Henry Cavill - 2020
Ethan Bell - 2020 (Fan Film on RUclips)
Ethan Thomas Jung - 2020 Fan Adv.
(Vagabond Repertory Theater Company-RUclips)
This list is not exhaustive. however, these are some of the
many actors who have played Sherlock Holmes on stage,
screen, radio and TV adaptations.
@Chaim Mendel : I started this journey of discovering the many actors who have played
Sherlock Holmes in 2017-2018. I've researched many hours, and watched and listened to
as many versions as I could find. The Holmes character has been not only performed in
the US and England, but S. America, Germany and even Russia. No other character has
attracted such an interest as Sherlock Holmes. I've listened to radio, audiobooks, TV
versions and movies. I also have developed a list of Holmes Audiobooks, which have
included pastiches written by Holmes fans. My search came to an end in 2021. I've
added the additional names on this list.
Awesome list and very commendable work you've done providing the history of portrayal of such a timeless character. Well done sir!!!