In the sequel to Guy Ritchie‘s Sherlock Holmes, Jared Harris (Mad Men) plays the villain Moriarty, Holmes’ nemesis that was referred to at the end of the first flick.  While the safe choice for Warner Bros. would have been to cast a huge star to play the villain, I think the casting of Harris was brilliant and perfect.  First, he’s a great actor.  But just as important as his talents in front of the camera is the fact that he’s a chameleon-like character actor.  If the studio had cast someone like Tom Cruise in the role, you’d have a tough time seeing Moriarty on screen.  However, with Harris as Holmes’ arch nemesis, I think they’ve nailed the casting and audiences are going to be in for a really fun ride.

Earlier this year I got to visit the set of Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows when the production was filming outside of London.  While on set I got to participate in a group interview with Harris where he talked about how he got cast, the way he worked with Robert Downey Jr. and Ritchie, the story of the sequel, how his Moriarty is so manipulative that he doesn’t need to commit violence himself or kill people as he can get others to do it for him, his research into the role, and a lot more.  Hit the jump for more.

Earlier today I was able to conduct an extended interview with an actor whose work I greatly admire: Jared Harris.  During our wide ranging conversation, we talked about making the jump from independent movies to big budget Hollywood blockbusters, Mad Men, his upcoming John Carpenter movie The Ward, Fringe, and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.  With our conversation covering so much ground, I’m breaking it up into smaller parts and I’m starting with the sequel to Sherlock Holmes.

In the sequel to the 2009 Guy Ritchie film, Harris plays the villain Moriarty, Holmes’ nemesis that was referred to at the end of the first flick.  While I knew Harris wouldn’t be able to say much about the story and what role he plays in the sequel, that didn’t stop us from talking about how he got involved in the project, what kind of research he did, what it was like working with Robert Downey Jr. and Ritchie, whether he thinks his version of Moriarty knows he’s evil, and his thoughts on unnecessary exposition in movies (which I completely agree with).  Hit the jump for what he said.