Sherlock co-creator Steven Moffat has revealed the first thing they have to do for each series is win the approval of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman.

The Doctor Who writer told Digital Spy the two stars – who play Sherlock and Watson in the hit BBC drama – “don’t need” the show anymore, so for every new episode he and co-creator Mark Gatiss have to persuade their two leading men to sign back on.

(BBC/Hartswood Films/Robert Viglasky)
Benedict and Martin as Sherlock and Watson (BBC/Hartswood Films/Robert Viglasky)

Steven said: “We can’t really proceed into a series and get Martin and Benedict on board, unless we’ve told them what we’re going to do and why they should do it.

“They don’t need it financially, God knows, they don’t need it fame-wise.

A picture of Steven Moffat at the Emmys
Steven Moffat writes Sherlock with Mark Gatiss (Dan Steinberg/Invision)

“You actually have to say, ‘This is irresistible, you have to come and do this.’ And if they’re keen – and they are – we’ll go and do it again.”

Since Sherlock began in 2010 Benedict Cumberbatch has become an Oscar-nominated actor, starring in films such as The Imitation Game and 12 Years A Slave and Martin starred in The Hobbit trilogy.