The 42-year-old actor, who plays Doctor John Watson in the BBC detective series, will resume filming at some point next year, reported Telegraph online.
"If that's going to be for a special - I'm speaking off-message here; if this was New Labour I'd get fired - I think that might be for next Christmas," he said.
"A Christmas special - that's what I understand."
Freeman also suggested that his off-screen partner Amanda Abbington will remain on the show as Watson's wife Mary "for the foreseeable future".
"While we play fast and loose with the original stories, we generally follow the trajectory of what Conan Doyle did," he added.