His Last Vow won Benedict Cumberbatch the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for Sherlock.
His Last Vow is the third episode of Sherlock’s third series and was broadcast in 2014. Cumberbatch’s performance as Sherlock Holmes earned the acting Emmy at the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards in 2014.
The episode, written by Steven Moffat and directed by Nick Hurran, adapts elements of Arthur Conan Doyle’s story The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton. Its plot centres on blackmail, a dangerous confrontation with Charles Augustus Magnussen, and the consequences of Sherlock’s actions.
The award category used the miniseries or movie classification because Sherlock episodes are feature-length television films rather than standard half-hour or hour-long episodes. Cumberbatch had received earlier Emmy nominations for the role, but His Last Vow brought his first win for playing Sherlock Holmes.