Jared Harris To Play Moriarty In 'Sherlock Holmes 2'

Ok, something about this doesn't seem right, but Latino Review are reporting that Jared Harris ("Mad Men," "I Shot Andy Warhol," "The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button") has landed the villainous role of Moriarty in "Sherlock Holmes 2."

The announcement is a bit of surprise considering the heavyweight names like Daniel Day-Lewis , Gary Oldman, Sean Penn, Javier Bardem and Brad Pitt that have been thrown around over the past little while, and seems like a big step down from the A-list where Warner Bros. and Guy Ritchie seemed to be aiming. Nothing against Harris, he's a fine actor, but we figured the highly touted villain of the film would've gone to a bigger name.

At any rate, Harris thus joins Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Noomi Rapace and Stephen Fry in the film which is set to shoot this fall. This morning we reported on rumors about Russell Brand meeting Ritchie for a role, but if it remains to be seen if their meeting was just for a cup of tea or to talk business.

With filming set to begin in a few weeks, a decision was expected shortly. Still, we're a bit surprised. But hey, it looks like a big step up for the longstanding character actor Harris and he certainly deserves it. "Sherlock Holmes 2" will hit theaters on December 16, 2011. [Deadline has confirmed this report]