--- description: The star of "Sherlock" and "The Hobbit" will take a part on the dark side in a West End production of "Richard III" title: Martin Freeman is heading to London's West End as Richard III image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte520f54a71200a94/698688e7cd804d6415cca1a5/458786191.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Martin Freeman To Play Richard III on London Stage by [Megan Gibson](/author/megan-gibson/) ## Megan Gibson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 4, 2014 1:06 PM CUT  Martin Freeman at the Los Angeles Premiere of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug". TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, CA. Martin Freeman at the Los Angeles Premiere of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug". TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, CA.Axelle/Bauer-Griffin -- FilmMagic by [Megan Gibson](/author/megan-gibson/) ## Megan Gibson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 4, 2014 1:06 PM CUT Martin Freeman will be [tackling Shakespeare](http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/apr/04/martin-freeman-to-play-richard-iii-london-west-end "undefined") later this year in London’s West End, when he stars as the conniving king in _Richard III_ at the Trafalgar Studios. The play, which will begin its run this summer, will be directed by Jamie Lloyd. The Machiavellian role will be something of a change for the actor, who made his name playing Tim in the BBC sitcom _The Office_ (the character was renamed Jim in the U.S. version), before becoming a superstar as Bilbo Baggins in _The Hobbit_ films and John Watson in _Sherlock_. Until now, audiences have been pretty accustomed to seeing Freeman play the good guy. Maybe Freeman is taking cues from his _Sherlock_ co-star Benedict Cumberbatch, who will also be appearing on a London stage for a Shakespearean role: [he’ll be playing Hamlet](http://time.com/38447/cumberbatch-to-play-hamlet-on-london-stage/ "undefined") in the Barbican Centre’s production in 2015\. Of course, we’re already used to Cumberbatch playing [tortured misfits](http://entertainment.time.com/2013/10/16/the-fifth-estate-a-hollywood-cartoon-of-julian-assange/ "undefined") by now. \[[_Guardian_](http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/apr/04/martin-freeman-to-play-richard-iii-london-west-end "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/49559/martin-freeman-to-play-richard-iii-on-london-stage/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/49559/martin-freeman-to-play-richard-iii-on-london-stage/"},"headline":"Martin Freeman To Play Richard III on London Stage","datePublished":"2014-04-04T13:06:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:08:18.430Z","description":"A hobbit, a hobbit, my kingdom for a hobbit! The \"Sherlock\" star, who plays Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson's movie trilogy, will rise to the challenge of playing Shakespeare's Richard III in a West End production","url":"https://time.com/49559/martin-freeman-to-play-richard-iii-on-london-stage/","keywords":["Sherlock","Benedict Cumberbatch","Theater","Shakespeare"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte520f54a71200a94/698688e7cd804d6415cca1a5/458786191.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan Gibson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/megan-gibson/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte520f54a71200a94/698688e7cd804d6415cca1a5/458786191.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"\"The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug\" - Los Angeles Premiere","caption":"\"The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug\" - Los Angeles Premiere","creditText":"Axelle/Bauer-Griffin -- FilmMagic","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/49559/martin-freeman-to-play-richard-iii-on-london-stage/","name":"Martin Freeman To Play Richard III on London Stage"}}]}] ```