Andrew Scott joining the cast of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, or Knives Out 3, will circle back to one of his most prolific television characters. Scott is one of the latest additions to the highly anticipated Knives Out and Glass Onion sequel from Rian Johnson, the acclaimed screenwriter and director of Poker Face, Looper, and Brick. Scandal star Kerry Washington has also been confirmed to join Daniel Craig as he reprises his iconic role of Benoit Blanc in Knives Out 3, a private investigator who is widely considered to be the best in the business.

Josh O’Connor (Challengers) and Cailee Spaeny (Civil War, Priscilla) have also joined the cast of Wake Up Dead Man, while Tom Hardy and Lindsay Lohan are currently rumored but unconfirmed to be attached. Johnson released a teaser trailer that revealed the title of Knives Out 3 narrated by Daniel Craig. Johnson posted the trailer on X (Twitter) and wrote, “We’re about to go into production on the 3rd one, and I’m very, very excited to share the title, which gives a little hint of where it’s going.” The teaser briefly recapped the previous two installments before a black coffin twirls into frame and the title Wake Up Dead Man is revealed.

Andrew Scott In A Benoit Blanc Movie Is Perfect After Sherlock’s Moriarty Role

Moriarty was a great enemy of the prolific detective

Andrew Scott is poised to be the perfect addition to the Knives Out universe following his legendary role as Professor Moriarty in the celebrated series Sherlock. A crucial character in the Benedict Cumberbatch-led series, Professor Moriarty, as played by Andrew Scott, first appeared in season one, episode three titled “The Great Game.” He would go on to become the greatest enemy of Sherlock Holmes and the man who infamously bested him in the Sherlock series finale “The Final Problem”. As one of Scott’s earliest television characters, which he last appeared as in 2017, Moriarty is a great indication of Scott’s potential in Knives Out 3.

While Sherlock Holmes was considered a prolific detective, Moriarty was a criminal mastermind who proved to be the only one who could match, elude, and eventually beat Sherlock at his own game. It would be somewhat symbolic if Scott’s character in Knives Out 3 turned out to be the key suspect or culprit in the anticipated murder that Wake Up Dead Man is expected to center on. While there are virtually no details that are currently available about the plot of the upcoming Rian Johnson film, Scott, as well as the characters played by O’Connor, Spaeny, and Washington, will likely all be potential killers.

Why Andrew Scott Is Such A Great Addition To Knives Out 3’s Cast

Scott is a phenomenal actor with a wide comedic and dramatic range

Scott has only gotten better at his craft since starring as Moriarty in Sherlock and has emerged in recent years as one of the most versatile and in-demand actors working today. His performance as The Priest in Fleabag season 2 is one of his most notable roles alongside Phoebe Waller-Bridge. He starred in one of the better episodes of Black Mirror season 5 titled “Smithereens” as a ride-share driver who had gone rogue to send a message to a giant tech guru. He appeared in the Oscar-winning WWII film 1917 in 2019 and starred alongside Paul Mescal (Aftersun, Gladiator 2) in the celebrated 2023 film All of Us Strangers.

Scott also starred as the titular protagonist in Netflix’s 2024 limited series Ripley, written and directed by Steven Zallian and based on The Talented Mr. Ripley novel by Patricia Highsmith. Even just by viewing his roles in All of Us Strangers and Ripley alone, it’s blatantly clear that Scott’s range as an actor is essentially as good as it gets. Scott can not only capture a sinister coldness in his antagonists and a relatable vulnerability in his protagonists, but he can also combine these elements into a singular role. Ripley is arguably Scott’s best overall performance because it showcases his incredible versatility.

Knives Out 3 Won’t Be Andrew Scott & Daniel Craig’s First Movie Together

Both actors starred in Spectre (2015)

Another great aspect of Scott joining the cast of Wake Up Dead Man is that it will reunite him with Craig after they both starred in 2015’s James Bond blockbuster Spectre. Scott played Max Denbigh, better known as C, in Spectre, a corrupt Director of the Joint Security Service who ends up being Bond’s antagonist. Given that Scott is one of the first actors to be cast in Knives Out 3, and considering that he has a history of playing unsuspecting villains, it could very well be that his character in Wake Up Dead Man will turn out to be the one guilty of the anticipated murder.