New Sherlock Special Scores Big in Box Offices in Asia

(Singapore, Wednesday, 13 January 2016) … Sherlock: The Abominable Bride is a hit in cinemas in Asia, rising to the top of the box office when it launched earlier in January.

The one-off 90 minute special set in Victorian London, Sherlock: The Abominable Bride stars Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game) and Martin Freeman (The Hobbit). Both return as the well-loved Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson in the acclaimed modern retelling of Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic stories.

The special was released in more than 6,000 cinema screens in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan, and has already been seen by over five million people in these countries. It took number one spots in China, Hong Kong and South Korea for English language releases. When it premiered in China on 4 January, the special took the number one English language release spot in the box office for four days, from 4th to 7th January. In Hong Kong, it was number one from 2nd to 6th January, and in Korea, Sherlock over took Star Wars: The Force Awakens in its opening week.

In China it has raked in more than USD19 million (RMB 124 million), while in South Korea, it has taken over US$7 million (KRW 9,090,645,000).

“We know that Sherlock has a sizeable fan base in Asia, so in conjunction with Hartswood Films we decided to release the one-off special in cinemas, to give Asian fans of the show the opportunity to be part of the global event – and to watch it on the big screen,” said David Weiland, EVP, Asia, BBC Worldwide. “We are very pleased at how well Sherlock has done in cinemas here and will continue to look for new and innovative ways to bring more global events to our fans here.”

Sherlock is written and created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, and inspired by the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Sherlock is produced by Sue Vertue and the executive producers are Beryl Vertue, Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat for Hartswood Films, Bethan Jones for BBC Cymru Wales, and Rebecca Eaton for Masterpiece. Sherlock: The Abominable Bride aired on BBC One in the UK on 1 January 2016.
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For more information, please contact:

For BBC Worldwide:
Jeanne Leong
BBC Worldwide
Tel: +65 6849 5292
Email: Jeanne.Leong@bbc.com

Gladys Sim
BBC Worldwide
Tel: +65 6849 5292
Email: Gladys.Sim@bbc.com

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