Last month, while promoting Captain America: Civil War, Robert Downey Jr. teased that production on the long-awaited Sherlock Holmes 3 could begin later this year. He also confirmed that director Guy Ritchie will return to the helm. Those details were never confirmed by the studio, but today we have word from producer Joel Silver, who backed up the actor's claims, revealing they are eyeing a fall shoot. The producer also confirmed that they have a script in place, and that both Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law will be available to reprise their roles as Holmes and Watson.

Back in 2011, the same year Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows was released, Drew Pearce (Iron Man 3) came aboard to write the script, but it isn't known if it's this script that the producers are moving forward with, or if other writers have come aboard since then. Unfortunately, Joel Silver didn't reveal any story details in his interview with Collider, but he did tease that they hope to start shooting before Robert Downey Jr. goes off to film the two-part Avengers: Infinity War movie. Here's what the producer had to say below.

"It looks like it could happen this fall. Downey said he wants to do it. He's gotta launch into another Avengers movie, right after the New Year, so we're trying to get it done. We have a script that we like. Jude [Law] is available and Downey is available, and we're hoping we can get it done. If it works, great. If not, we'll do it another time. But, it looks like it could happen now."

We have previously reported that production on Avengers: Infinity War will begin this November, with both movies shooting back-to-back over a grueling nine-month stretch. It seems that Robert Downey Jr. won't be required to be on set until early 2017 though, giving him a bit more time to shoot Sherlock Holmes 3, if everything falls into place. When asked if this movie is being conceived as the final installment of this franchise, Joel Silver says that he hopes to make many more Sherlock Holmes movies in the future.

"I hope [it's not the last one]. I don't think so. How many Bond films have they made? As long as there's a character, we can work with it. It's not an end story. We can keep going, as long as people want to do it. It's [the actor's] call. They have to say, 'Okay, I'm ready to go.' I read about them making another Bad Boys. If they want to do it, then you try to get it done."

The franchise launched with 2009's Sherlock Holmes, which took in $209 million domestically and $524 million worldwide, from a $90 million budget. The follow-up Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows followed in 2011, earning $186.8 million domestically and $545.4 million worldwide. We'll be sure to keep you posted with more updates on Sherlock Holmes 3 as soon as more details surface.