15 Best New TV Characters Of The Decade

Obviously Sherlock Holmes was not a new character this decade, and Benedict Cumberbatch wasn’t even the only actor to play him this decade. Robert Downey Jnr, Sir Ian McKellen and (regrettably) Will Ferrell all played him on the big screen, while Jonny Lee Miller also tackled Sherlock on television.

Of all of them though, Cumberbatch was the clear standout.

With the perfect storm of being British TV and having their two leads blow up in Hollywood after the first season, we’ve been a little starved of Sherlock action. With just fourteen episodes spread across nine years, there isn’t a wealth of Sherlock moments to pick from.

In those brief moments though, Cumberbatch really shone. Reinventing the role away from the usual charming Sherlock, Cumberbatch’s was extremely anti social and emotionless, while keeping the intelligence and arrogance which has characterised Sherlock since his Victorian creation.

As is typical of showrunner Steven Moffat, the show was excellent at setting up its key mythology, but eventually tied itself up in knots. Whether we ever get any more Sherlock remains to be seen, but Cumberbatch’s performance has cemented him as a legendary character of the 2010s.