What if it's an English actor playing an English Holmes, but in an American setting? Like Tim Roth on Lie to Me... Or would that still piss people off?
At any rate, it's only at the pilot stage. There's still as good a chance as any that it won't even be picked up to air.
Well, like I said, we've literally had an American Holmes already. House is Sherlock Holmes, just a doctor instead of a detective.
But, as I said above, if the show is written half as well as Sherlock (and if it was written half as well, it'd still be good, because that's how freaking good this series is), I guarantee it will get picked up and that people will like it.
If House, Lie to Me, The Mentalist, and Monk have taught us anything, it's that American audiences love the quirky detective archetype that Sherlock Holmes is the father of. Heck, the success of the Sherlock Holmes films in America are proof enough of that.
And if the show is good, I'll watch the heck out of it too. I love Sherlock Holmes, and I like watching any interpretation of the character. The only negative to it, is, as others have said, I would rather a major American station just pick up Sherlock and air it. Or possibly team up with BBC and offer to increase their season length.