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Young Sherlock: Tseng, Irons on Balancing Action & Mystery, Parkhill

Zine Tseng and Max Irons discussed Young Sherlock, working with series creator Matthew Parkhill, balancing action with mystery, and more.

Young Sherlock stars Zine Tseng (3 Body Problem) and Max Irons (Condor) are just as intricate to Matthew Parkhill-created series as part of the ensemble cast as stars Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Dónal Finn playing Sherlock Holmes and his would-be future nemesis, James Moriarty. Tseng plays Princess Gulun Shou'an, a Chinese royal who has sacred scrolls to protect and helps set things in motion. Irons plays Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock's older brother who also comes from the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle world, who works as a government official and shares his brother's abilities of deduction.

Young Sherlock is a legendary origin story of the iconic, world-renowned detective, an irreverent, action-laden mystery that follows the character's early adventures. Sherlock Holmes is a disgraced young man – raw and unfiltered– when he finds himself wrapped up in a murder case that threatens his liberty. His first-ever case unravels a globe-trotting conspiracy, culminating in an explosive showdown that changes his life forever. Unfolding in 1870s Oxford and adventuring abroad, the series will expose the early antics of the anarchic adolescent who is yet to evolve into Baker Street's most renowned resident. Tseng and Irons spoke to Bleeding Cool about Parkhill, Guy Ritchie's Prime Video series loosely based on Andrew Lane's take on the Conan Doyle world, working with Parkhill, the close-knit ensemble cast, and balancing the action with the mystery.

Young Sherlock Stars Zine Tseng and Mix Irons on Trusting the Process with Creator/Showrunner Matthew Parkhill and Embracing His Vision

BC: What intrigued you about Young Sherlock, and did you have a personal favorite incarnation of the characters growing up?

Tseng: Growing up, I watched Guy Ritchie's films, and that's my best introduction to this world. I also watched…what else, like the Eastern culture. We make our own Holmes stories, then we just steal the Sherlock Holmes titles, and just put it on the show, so that was mostly my education. My favorite version of all time is my version of Sherlock Holmes, Young Sherlock, and it's because I have experienced it. I walked through these fascinating scenes, and I've grown from this experience.

Irons: I didn't really. I wasn't much of a reader at school, so I didn't know Sherlock Holmes particularly. I did a bit of reading beforehand, but none of the Young Sherlock material; I spent most of the time on traditional Sherlock Holmes (from Arthur Conan Doyle) material. To see the emergence of these characters that we all fall in love with, Moriarty and Sherlock.

Tseng: Mycroft…

Irons: But seeing the genesis of these characters is fascinating, and I think it's going to bring a whole new legion of fans, not only to our show, but then onto the world and all the lore of Sherlock Holmes.

Tseng: Personally, I just enjoy these great people. They fall into each category of their [respective] characters. I love Hero playing Sherlock, Dónal as Moriarty, and Max as Mycroft. I love everybody in their places. They just get the best spice out of everything. I had a great time, so that's just my own preference.

Irons: I agree.

What did you like working with Matthew as a creative?

Tseng: He's amazing, a genius, a teacher, knows his history, culture, society, and also, he's a very humble man, and his magic, working together with Guy Ritchie, has this great understanding of this universe. They know Sherlock Holmes, inside and out, like how he will take a shower or something. They know everything, and the stuff that makes our job so much easier.

Irons: Also, he's collaborative. We're invited in and as the actors, often you're just told where to stand, how to say it, shut up, and get on with it, but not here. We were all involved in chemistry, and yeah, it was an honor.

Tseng: And I watched them talk about characters too, because Matthew will come to set and walk next to Max and ask, "What do you think? How do you feel about today's scene? What did you feel yesterday?" He is very encouraging to us to take on the freedom that he gave us.

What did you like about the way this series paces itself between transitioning from the mystery aspects to the action aspects?

Irons: What I love that Guy and Matthew managed to do is they managed to achieve both objectives without compromising on either.

Tseng: Yeah, merging.

Irons: Merging, so you get the pace, dynamism, and kinetic excitement. You also get the intelligence, precision, mystery, and the audience is running along with them. We went to a screening the other night with a thousand people, watching the first two episodes. I didn't see a single phone; no one was texting, everyone was just gripped, and that's a hard thing to do when they pulled it off.

Tseng: And I really enjoyed watching the fight scenes when there is a purpose for the fight sequence, not just fighting for the sake of fighting.

Season one of Young Sherlock, which also stars Joseph Fiennes, Natascha McElhone, and Colin Firth, is available on Prime Video.

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