Russia has been a hot topic lately in the political headlines in the U.S., but thanks to some nerdy hackers the country is infiltrating the Sherlock fandom, too.
The fourth season of Sherlock will be coming to a close tomorrow night with a third episode that could also mark a series finale as well. “The Final Problem” is set to air on Sunday, 1/15 at 7/6c.
However, a few days ago, the British Film Institute in the UK held a preview screening of the much-anticipated episode for over 400 fans. Almost immediately after the screening, S4E3 was leaked online. It’s not clear if a fan attending the screening illegally recorded the episode or if it was obtained by hackers another way. Regardless, the whole fiasco has gotten a rise out of the Sherlock crew. The show’s producer, Sue Vertue, took to Twitter to warn fans about the leak:
Russian version of #Sherlock TFP has been illegally uploaded.Please don’t share it. You’ve done so well keeping it spoiler free.Nearly there
— sue vertue (@suevertue) January 14, 2017
While she does commend fans for helping to keep the specifics of the episode under-wraps, she also pleads with her followers not to share any links to the illegally uploaded version.
The official Sherlock Twitter followed suit by posting a similar tweet urging fans not to share:
We are aware that #Sherlock episode 3 has been uploaded illegally online. If you come across it, please do not share it. #KeepMeSpoilerFree
— Sherlock (@Sherlock221B) January 14, 2017
It seems that a post on reddit was one of the first warnings about the leak, but the discussion quickly turned into a flood of users posting links to the episode. The discussion has since been locked and moderators have been working furiously to delete any links or comments with spoilers. They’ve even started enforcing a ban on users who try to do so.
For now, it looks like the only version available is dubbed in Russian so while it would be tough for many fans to understand the dialogue, the visual would be enough to ruin the finale. So official warning to my fellow Sherlock fans: Beware of spoilers and avoid the leak! Also, don’t learn Russian until after tomorrow, okay? Just in case.
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