Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes in a still from the upcoming fourth season of BBC's "Sherlock." (Photo : Facebook/Sherlock)
The BBC released the first teaser trailer for the upcoming fourth series of "Sherlock" during the show's panel at San Diego's Comic-Con on July 24, Sunday.
The new trailer for the hit series, which features Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes, teases the return of nemesis Moriarty and introduces new villain Toby Jones, according to The Independent.
Except for last year's Victorian Christmas special, "The Adominable Bride," Sherlick has not released a single episode since 2014 and fans of the show have been eagerly waiting for footage from the highly anticipated fourth season.
"Sherlock's" patient fans were finally rewarded with a preview of the upcoming season of the British mystery series on Sunday.
The minute-and-a-half-long trailer opens with a shot of Andrew Scott as Moriarty before Sherlock warns of a looming threat: "Something's coming. Maybe it's Moriarty. Maybe it's not."
The teaser also features scenes of Mr. Holmes engaging in fist and gun fights and looking visibly shaken in one particular scene. The promo makes a promise that, "everything will be tested" as it shows glimpses of what appears to be an intense and action-packed fourth season.
The show's panelists included Cumberbatch, co-star Amanda Abbington, who plays the role of John Watson's (Martin Freeman) wife Mary on the BBC show, co-creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss as well as producer Sue Vertue.
During the panel discussion, Abbington revealed that the upcoming season will be the "darkest" one ever written by the showrunners while Cumberbatch teased that were will be "quite a few tears" in the coming episodes. "It's a genuine emotional roller coaster," he said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. "The learning curves, they're massive."
Sherlock Season 4 is slated to premiere on BBC in the U.K. and PBS in the U.S. sometime in 2017, and will continue its format of three 90-minute episodes.
Watch the trailer below:
