‘Dexter’ actor Jonny Lee Miller cast as Sherlock Holmes in CBS pilot ‘Elementary’

Jonny Lee Miller, who had a recurring role on Showtime’s Dexter has been cast as Sherlock Holmes in a new pilot for CBS called Elementary.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, CBS describes the show as a modern-day take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s timeless Sherlock Holmes stories set in New York. It will be one of eight pilots CBS has ordered that will compete for a slot in the fall.

Deadline reports that the show will be produced by CBS Television Studios with Robert Doherty as writer on the pilot and executive producer. Joining Doherty as executive producers are Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly. Michael Cuesta has been tapped to direct. Timberman’s recent work includes A Gifted Man and Unforgettable, both on CBS.

Miller last starred on US television in ABC’s short lived drama Eli Stone and, in 2010, had a recurring role on Dexter. He appeared in the 1996 film Trainspotting and is currently working on Neil Jordan’s Byzantium and Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows. Both films are scheduled for release this year.

Ironically, Miller appeared alongside Benedict Cumberbatch in a London stage production of Frankenstein, notes KSiteTV. Cumberbatch currently stars as Sherlock Holmes on the BBC hit Sherlock, which places the Conan Doyle stories in modern London.