Robert Downey Jr. Brought His Hidden Superpower to Guy Ritchie's Masterpiece Action Franchise

Robert Downey Jr.'s racked up plenty of prolific roles over the years, including dramatic turns in Zodiac and Oppenheimer and his tenure as Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There's another role that deserves just as much recognition: his take on Sherlock Holmes. Downey played the iconic detective in 2009's Sherlock Holmes and its sequel, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, with Guy Ritchie directing both films. Ritchie and Downey touch upon many of Holmes' various talents, including his talent for playing the violin and crafting elaborate disguises, but it does something that no other adaptation has done and reminds the reader that Holmes is a skilled combatant.

Holmes' fighting skills are touched upon in Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories, revealing that he's mastered the Victorian fighting style of Baritsu. Baritsu mixes jujutsu, boxing, savate, and cane combat together into a fluid series of moves which feels perfect for Holmes' ever-analytical mind. It also is a perfect fit for Guy Ritchie's sensibilities, as he places several fight scenes in both of his Sherlock Holmes movies that display Holmes' intellect and Ritchie's tendencies for stylized violence. It also turns out that Robert Downey Jr. had a large part in bringing this aspect of Holmes to the big screen.

Robert Downey Jr. Brought His Martial Arts Expertise to 'Sherlock Holmes'

Much like Sherlock Holmes, Robert Downey Jr. is a practitioner of martial arts — particularly the Wing Chun style that was developed by legendary martial arts master Ip Man. He utilizes those techniques throughout both Sherlock Holmes films, mixing the direct strikes of Wing Chun with the various disciplines incorporated in Baritsu. The result is a fast-paced, unpredictable style of fighting that shows Holmes has an edge; it's also something that Downey and Guy Ritchie connected over, as Downey revealed during a press conference for the film:

"We've definitely got to spend some time together, and I love his take on it. We're both martial arts enthusiasts and historically, in the real origin stories of Sherlock Holmes, he's kind of a bad-ass and a bare-knuckle boxer and studies the rare art of baritsu. If you look baritsu up, they can't even really tell you what it is, so it gives us a lot of leeway."

Though it's been roughly a decade since Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Downey and Ritchie are both set to return to Sherlock Holmes' world with different projects. Downey is slated to star in a third Sherlock Holmes film directed by Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman), while Ritchie is bringing the Young Sherlock series to Prime Video, exploring the bond between Holmes and his longtime friend, Dr. John Watson. Both are sure to show off Holmes' potential for fighting.

The Fight Scenes in Guy Ritchie's 'Sherlock Holmes' Movies Mix Brains with Brawn

The way that Robert Downey Jr.'s fighting skills are deployed in the Sherlock Holmes films aren't like any other fight scenes you've seen before. They break down Holmes' every move in slow motion, revealing the thought that goes into his fighting style...and then ramp up the speed to showcase just how skilled he is. A key example concerns Holmes' fight in a boxing match; he sizes up his opponent, decides to distract him and then knocks him off balance, then surgically dismantles him with a series of brutal punches. Holmes even calculates that it'll take six weeks for his opponent to recover physically, and six months psychologically — which is terrifying when you think about it.

This fighting style hits a snag in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, when Holmes comes face to face with his archnemesis, Professor James Moriarty (Jared Harris). Moriarty is able to mentally counter every move that Holmes makes, and on top of that he's a supremely skilled boxer, forcing Holmes to make an unexpected move. What's equally impressive about this fight scene is that it takes place entirely within Holmes and Moriarty's minds, showcasing their mix of physical and mental skills. Young Sherlock and the third Sherlock Holmes films have a lot of work to do if they want to top those fight scenes.