Enola Holmes 3 begins with a wedding on the horizon, but the mystery that follows quickly becomes Enola’s most personal case yet. Millie Bobby Brown returns with all the wit fans expect, and Enola and Tewkesbury (Louis Partridge) finally get the romantic chapter viewers have been waiting for.

Warning: This review contains major spoilers for Enola Holmes 3, including the ending.

Three films in, Enola Holmes no longer needs to convince anyone that she is a detective. The intelligent but inexperienced teenager we first met in 2020 has built a name for herself, solved cases alongside her famous older brother and become increasingly confident in her own abilities. In Enola Holmes 3, however, the question is no longer whether Enola is capable of creating an independent life. Instead, she must decide whether that life can include another person without losing any of the freedom she fought so hard to claim.

It is a more grown-up challenge for a more grown-up Enola, and Millie Bobby Brown rises to it beautifully.

Directed by Adolescence filmmaker Philip Barantini and written by returning screenwriter Jack Thorne, the third film takes Enola from the familiar streets of London to Malta, where she is preparing to marry Lord Tewkesbury. But alas, no Holmes family occasion can unfold without a mystery interrupting it.

When Sherlock disappears shortly before the ceremony, Enola swaps her wedding celebrations for another investigation. His kidnapping is soon followed by the disappearance of Tewkesbury’s mother, bringing Enola, Tewkesbury and Dr Watson together to discover who is behind the abductions and what they hope to achieve.

Enola Holmes Has Grown Up

The film opens with a surprise, dropping us straight into what appears to be Enola and Tewkesbury’s wedding. After watching their relationship develop across the first two films, it feels unexpectedly bold to begin with them already at the altar. Of course, the ceremony does not go to plan. Enola’s doubts are already beginning to surface, and Sherlock’s sudden kidnapping gives her an urgent reason to leave the wedding behind.

This opening also shows how much Enola has changed. She is still quick-witted and impulsive, and still perfectly happy to pull the audience into her confidence, but she carries herself with more certainty now.

Brown has grown alongside the character, and her performance captures that without losing what made Enola so enjoyable in the first place. Her comic timing is as good as ever, especially in the fourth-wall-breaking moments that make viewers feel like her co-conspirators. Beneath the confidence, though, there is more vulnerability, and that becomes increasingly important as the film goes on.

“We are siblings, but our notebooks, like our minds, are our own,” Sherlock tells her, recognising that Enola has become a detective entirely in her own right. She can read a crime scene in seconds and throw herself into danger without so much as blinking. Marriage, however, is another matter entirely.

Becoming Lady Tewkesbury comes with the kind of expectations Enola has spent her whole life resisting. The Holmes name matters to her because she has fought so hard to prove that she is worthy of it, so the idea of giving it up feels like losing a part of herself she has only just claimed. Sherlock does little to settle those fears, warning that marriage could cost her both her independence and the detective life she has built.

Yet Enola has never been defined by being alone, no matter what her mother intended when she gave her a name that spells it backwards. “I want to be his,” she admits, making it clear that her uncertainty is not about Tewkesbury. She loves him. The question is not whether he is the right person, but whether choosing him can still leave room for the life she wants and the person she has become.

That is where Enola Holmes 3 finds its emotional centre.

A New Mystery in Malta

Malta gives the film a welcome change of scenery. The sunlit coastline, historic streets and dramatic stone architecture create a romantic wedding backdrop while opening the series visually beyond Victorian London.

The mystery itself moves quickly between kidnappings, coded messages, political tensions and the return of a familiar enemy. There are moments when the film pauses to explain how its different clues connect, but watching Enola piece everything together remains one of the most enjoyable parts of the series.

Her intelligence is never presented as a sudden revelation anymore. “A Holmes does not disappear without leaving clues for a Holmes,” Enola declares, before proving exactly why Sherlock trusted her to find them. She enters a room already knowing she belongs there, spots details everyone else has missed and confidently explains her deductions to those still trying to catch up.

Dr Watson, played by Himesh Patel, is an entertaining companion during the investigation. His understated reactions provide a good contrast to Enola’s energy, particularly when she becomes several steps ahead of everyone around her. The two make an enjoyable detective pairing without the film attempting to replace Enola’s relationship with Sherlock.

The story also incorporates Malta’s history under British colonial rule, connecting the central conspiracy to questions of power, inequality and resistance. While Enola’s personal journey remains at the heart of the film, this wider context gives the case consequences beyond the Holmes family.

Barantini preserves the visual personality established by the previous instalments, including Enola’s direct addresses to the camera, illustrated transitions and fast-moving deductions. The action feels slightly more intense this time, particularly during the horseback sequences and the physical confrontations towards the end, reflecting the darker and more dangerous case Enola has been pulled into.

Enola and Tewkesbury Remain the Heart of the Film

As entertaining as the investigation is, Enola and Tewkesbury’s relationship gives the film its heart. Millie Bobby Brown and Louis Partridge have always shared an easy chemistry, but Enola Holmes 3 gives it more space to breathe. Tewkesbury is understandably hurt when their wedding is interrupted and frustrated by Enola’s instinct to run towards danger, yet he never asks her to change for him.

Their disagreements come from two people trying to understand how their lives will fit together, rather than from any real doubt over whether they love one another. The challenge is convincing Enola that marriage does not have to change her, and that choosing him does not mean giving up the life she has built.

Their easy teasing leads to one of the film’s funniest moments, when Tewkesbury’s full name is revealed to be Earnest Augustus Tebbity-Gore, with Tewkesbury being a family given name. Enola turns to the camera and says, “Yes, he has a first name. I was surprised too.” Brown’s delivery here genuinely had us laughing.

Partridge is excellent in the role, giving Tewkesbury plenty of charm and more to do than simply wait for Enola to solve the case. He throws himself into the investigation and stays beside her when things become dangerous, never losing faith in the life they could build together.

The scenes where Enola and Tewkesbury are alone together are especially sweet. An early montage of them dancing, laughing and enjoying one another’s company builds their relationship beautifully, giving the film an immediate sense of how close they have become. “When it was just the two of us, those were the best times of all,” Enola reflects, and it is easy to believe her. Brown and Partridge make the affection between them feel natural in every look and exchange. For viewers who have followed Enola and Tewkesbury since they first met as two young runaways, seeing them reach this point feels genuinely rewarding.

Henry Cavill’s Sherlock Remains a Welcome Presence

Sherlock’s kidnapping means Henry Cavill is absent for a significant part of the film, but he remains a strong presence whenever he appears.

Cavill’s more restrained Sherlock continues to work well alongside Brown’s expressive and energetic Enola. Their sibling relationship has gradually developed across the trilogy, moving from Sherlock viewing his younger sister as someone who required his protection to recognising her as a detective in her own right.

Sherlock is initially sceptical about Enola’s decision to marry and cannot quite understand why she would choose a life he believes could limit her independence. His disapproval is blunt, but beneath it is a brother trying, rather awkwardly, to protect her.

“You’re being emotional. It’s understandable, but unnecessary,” he tells her early on. The line returns in one of the film’s best sibling moments, when Enola repeats it back to Sherlock near the end and stops him from doing something he would regret. It is a brilliant reversal, showing how far their relationship has come and how fully he now sees her as his equal.

That leads into an especially lovely scene between the two, as Sherlock finally gives Enola the recognition she has long wanted from him. “Enola, you are a Holmes. But what I failed to say is that, truly, you are so much more. You might even be extraordinary,” he tells her before they embrace. The apology, followed by their very sweet hug, gives their relationship one of its most rewarding moments across the trilogy.

Helena Bonham Carter makes a welcome return as Eudoria, bringing her wonderfully unpredictable energy back into Enola’s world. She remains mostly in hiding and was seemingly prepared to miss her daughter’s first attempt at marrying Tewkesbury, but as ever, Eudoria appears exactly when Enola needs her most.

It is exactly the kind of guidance Enola needs at that moment, reminding her that the decision still belongs entirely to her. Eudoria’s later advice, “Look at what’s in front of you, yes, but do not forget to look behind that front,” also proves important as the mystery unfolds.

Their relationship has never been straightforward, but Eudoria still knows how to remind Enola of her own strength when doubt begins to take over. She may spend much of the film away from the action, yet she arrives at the right moments and is there for her daughter in a particularly meaningful way by the end.

A Dangerous Reunion With Moriarty

Sharon Duncan-Brewster’s return as Mira Troy, better known as Moriarty, gives Enola an opponent who can match both her intelligence and determination. Moriarty is more physically threatening here than she was in the previous film, and her confrontations with Enola carry genuine danger. Their final battle is about more than who can fight hardest. It brings together two women whose brilliance has been underestimated by the world around them, but who have chosen very different ways to answer that.

Duncan-Brewster commits fully to Moriarty’s fury, making her a formidable force. Brown matches that intensity, especially in the final fight, when Enola has to rely on instinct as much as deduction. The action never overwhelms the series’ playful spirit, but it does reflect the film’s more mature tone.

CultureCues Standout Moment

The final wedding between Enola and Tewkesbury is the emotional payoff fans have been waiting for.

After the interrupted ceremony, the investigation and Enola’s fears about what marriage might take away from her, watching the pair finally choose one another feels earned. This is not Enola accepting a future that someone else has designed for her. She reaches the wedding after deciding for herself that loving Tewkesbury does not require her to stop being Enola Holmes.

The film gives Enola and Tewkesbury plenty of sweet moments, but holds back their kiss until the end, making it feel as though fans are waiting alongside them. Just before the wedding, clips from the previous films remind us how far their relationship has come, from their first adventure to everything they mean to one another. When they finally kiss, it is every bit as beautiful and rewarding as fans would hope.

The wedding itself is far more intimate than the grand ceremony planned at the beginning, with Eudoria officiating as Enola and Tewkesbury choose one another on their own terms. That smaller, more personal ending suits them perfectly. Enola does not have to give up her independence to be loved, and the film lets her step into this new chapter without closing the door on everything that makes her who she is.

The CultureCues Verdict

Enola Holmes 3 is a fun, beautifully designed and emotionally satisfying continuation of the Netflix series.

The mystery occasionally becomes tangled beneath its different conspiracies and historical threads, but the film always finds its way back to Enola. Her fears about marriage, her changing relationship with Sherlock and her love for Tewkesbury give this instalment a more personal focus than its predecessors.

Henry Cavill is great as always, Louis Partridge remains an endearing and thoughtful Tewkesbury, and Sharon Duncan-Brewster makes the most of Moriarty’s dangerous return. The wider cast also delivers strong performances throughout. Still, this is Millie Bobby Brown’s film from its first clue to its final kiss.

Brown makes Enola’s growth feel completely natural. She is stronger and more assured than the girl we first met, but she has not lost her humour, curiosity or willingness to race directly towards trouble. This is a more mature Enola Holmes story that still remembers to be playful, and one that delivers a particularly lovely reward for viewers who have been invested in Enola and Tewkesbury from the beginning.

Great stories may begin with a wedding, but Enola Holmes 3 proves they can end with one too. Thankfully, her next chapter looks set to contain room for both a husband and plenty more mysteries.

CultureCues Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Enola Holmes 3 arrives on Netflix on 1 July 2026.

Nikki Murray

Nikki Murray is a UK-based writer, screenwriter and founder & editor of CultureCues, covering film, television, music and pop culture. Her work focuses on storytelling and the moments shaping modern entertainment.