Watson viewers stunned by Sherlock Holmes spin-off’s Moriarty casting reveal
Watson viewers stunned by Sherlock Holmes spin-off’s Moriarty casting reveal
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CBS’s new medical drama is a daring spin-off of ‘Sherlock Holmes’. CBS’s new medical drama Watson has already left viewers speechless with its casting reveal of a classic villain. The series, which aired its pilot episode immediately after the NFL AFC Championship between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills, is a daring spin-off of Arthur Conan Doyle’s fictional detective Sherlock Holmes.
![[Morris Chestnut leads ‘Watson’ as the eponymous doctor]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/15/Screenshot-2025-01-27-at-9.22.07%E2%80%AFAM.jpg)
Starring Morris Chestnut as the eponymous Doctor Watson, the show picks up one year after Sherlock and his archenemy, James Moriarty, fall to their deaths. As Watson resumes his medical practice by opening the Holmes Clinic in Pittsburgh to treat patients with strange and unidentifiable ailments, he soon discovers that Moriarty might still be alive.
![[Randall Park as Moriarty in ‘Watson’]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/16/Screenshot-2025-01-27-at-11.26.02%E2%80%AFAM.jpg)
*Warning — spoilers for Watson episode one ahead*. At the end of the episode, it’s revealed that Moriarty is indeed alive and played by Fresh Off the Boats star Randall Park. The comedic actor, who also played “Asian Jim” in The Office, was not entirely who fans were expecting to play the infamous criminal mastermind.
“That is unexpected casting for Moriarty and I’m not mad at it!” one viewer wrote on X/Twitter, adding: “Might be worth sticking around just for that alone.”. “RANDALL PARK AS MORIARTY?! YOOOOOO!!! THIS IS EPIC!” a second exclaimed. “JIMMY WOO IS JAMES MORIARTY??” another asked, referencing Park’s Wandavision agent Jimmy Woo.
“I’m always thinking about what’s the most fun for the audience. I think that we have a strong enough concept to draw crowds to the show anyway and that the idea of seeing Moriarty — but really Randall Park playing Moriarty, which I find to be a really surprising, interesting choice — the idea of that being a surprise and shock was appealing to me,” he explained.
