If you thought Sherlock Holmes was cool, just wait until you hear about his badass younger sister. Enola Holmes, played by Millie Bobby Brown sans her Stranger Things buzz, is the subject of an eponymous period dramedy heading to Netflix this September. In a new trailer, Netflix gives us a peek into some of Enola’s upcoming shenanigans — and a good look at her classy brothers, Sherlock (Henry Cavill) and Mycroft (Sam Claflin).
The trailer opens with a supercut of Enola spending time with her mother, portrayed by Helena Bonham Carter, throughout the years. “She was my whole world,” Enola says, “which leads me onto the second thing you need to know. I awoke to find that my mother was missing. She did not return.”
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This sets off a chaotic chain of events involving Enola’s brothers, a few disguises, and ultimately, a great escape. Enola calls her brothers in to help find her mom, but instead, they’re shocked by her “wild” behavior and send her off to finishing school to become a lady. In the middle of the night, she hatches an escape plan and attempts to track down her beloved mother on her own. Enola Holmes will premiere September 23, and you can watch the trailer below.
Unlike Sherlock and Mycroft, Enola isn’t the creation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: her story is based off of the young adult series by Nancy Springer, which takes place in the Sherlock Holmes universe but focuses on brand-new mysteries and characters. Enola Holmes is also the subject of an ongoing and difficult to follow lawsuit. Some Sherlock details are considered public domain, reports The Verge, but specific plotlines and character traits from Doyle’s final 10 stories are still owned by the estate. Doyle’s estate has argued that Springer’s books, along with Netflix’s movie, incorporate elements of the Sherlock Holmes books protected under this copyright.
One of these elements, oddly, is Sherlock’s sense of empathy. Only in the copyrighted books, his estate writes, did “Conan Doyle made the surprising artistic decision to have his most famous character — known around the world as a brain without a heart — develop into a character with a heart.” The complaint clarifies that, in the stories considered public domain, Holmes does not “express emotion” or “respect women.” Basically, if Sherlock treats Enola with respect and empathy, Netflix might have to fork over some money.
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