Why Netflix’s Enola Holmes Decided To Skip A Major Kiss Scene

Louis Partridge and Millie Bobby Brown in Enola Holmes
(Image credit: (Netflix))

Spoilers ahead for Enola Holmes.

Netflix’s recent hit, Enola Holmes, features a number of names we already know now as updated iterations of the family of Sherlock Holmes. Stranger ThingsMillie Bobby Brown leads the pack as the famed detective’s sister, Man of Steel’s Henry Cavill is Sherlock and The Hunger Games’ Sam Chaflin plays his brother Mycroft. But the film also introduces a young star into the mix: 17-year-old Louis Partridge, who's played Lord Tewkesbury and is the object of Enola’s affection.

Well… not quite yet. But the chemistry between the two teens was definitely there, as they dodged the hit on his head and Enola solved ciphers to solve the mystery of her mother’s disappearance. By the end of Enola Holmes, Tewkesbury asks Enola to stay with him and his family and lovingly kisses her wrist. According to Louis Partridge, the movie originally featured more affection between the pair at the end. In his words:

There was actually in the script—yeah, maybe I shouldn't tell you, it’s a little bit of inside information—there was meant to be a kiss scene. Well not a kiss scene but like a little kiss on the cheek or something at the gates when I'm in my, you know, top hat about to go into to vote. But we decided on the day to leave it sort of up in the air or leave it hanging, which I think was a really good call. Because it's sort of, you know, it's ambiguous, we don't really know.

There you have it. If you were sensing a little more magnetism between the two young Enola Holmes characters, you’d be right. It sounds like Louis Partridge was originally going to kiss the cheek of Millie Bobby Brown per the script but, on set they decided to tease the audience a little with an open-ended future between them. Partridge continued his interview with Girlfriend here:

And it also I think it's quite innocent. It's not one thing, that relationship, there's elements of romance, obviously, but then they also get on really, really well. And so I really liked it. You know, they don't have to define sort of where they are and they just get on well together as people so I hope the internet received it like that, and not just like, 'oh my god, they're in love.’

It was a solid choice for Enola Holmes to make. Enola and Tewksbury’s relationship is adorable enough without the pair showing affection for one another in the Netflix movie. Their romantic tension is clear through their interactions, but it may including a kiss at the end may have caused things to feel a bit forced.

Plus, the final moments of Enola Holmes leave a number of loose ends for the audience, hopefully signaling a coming sequel for the series. Enola is based on a series of books after all, and there’s another mystery already lined up for Sherlock’s sister to solve should the streaming service decide to invest in another installment.

Enola Holmes became a No. 1 trending Netflix film last week and has been received well by critics and viewers. The movie’s director, Harry Bardbeer, said there are discussions to continue the story. So let’s hope it does happen so we can see where the relationship between Enola Holmes and Lord Tewkesbury goes.

Plus, a sequel would offer more opportunities for audiences to see Henry Cavill’s version of Sherlock Holmes. Wouldn’t it be sweet to see the detective have a larger role in the sequel? While we wait, check out what new movies and TV shows are coming to Netflix this month.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.