Over the past 2013, the face of Benedict Cumberbatch did not leave the movie screens for a minute: he was seen in the image of the villain Khaan in the JJ Abrams franchise “Star Trek: Into Darkness”, in the role of Wikileaks creator Julian Assange in Bill Condon’s film “The Fifth Estate”, in the role of a decent slave owner in Steve McQueen's film 12 Years a Slave, and during the New Year holidays the actor managed to appear on TV: the new season of Sherlock was shown on Channel One. It can be assumed that the British artist simply does not have time for leisure, but such a stir among his person has developed for many years, starting with small works that are as important as his future films.

“A little over forty” (mini-series), 2003, UK

The British actor’s first memorable role was the role of the eldest son Rory in the mini-series “Early Forty,” in which he played alongside Hugh Laurie and Anna Chancellor.

The series follows GP Paul Slippery (Hugh Laurie), whose wife finally returns to work after years of raising three sons. The husband is a little nervous about this, and begins to worry more when he realizes that he has not had sex with his wife for a long time. This begins a comical, slightly absurd story about a simple family, where, in addition to the problems of marriage, topics about employment and youth also emerge, since Paul has three sons, two of whom cannot share a girl between them.

One of them is the character played by Benedict. In the image of a decent and sensible man, but not denying all the joys of young life, he confronts his brother, who behaves more frivolously. A conflict arises against the backdrop of common parental problems (the father of the family believes that his wife is having an affair), but it is resolved through absurdity, comedy and an unpredictable ending.

Thus, thanks to all the awkwardness and slight absurdity, the result is a good comedy consisting of jokes on the topic of sex, where specific British humor is of great importance.

“Atonement” 2007, dir. Joe Wright, UK

Having opened the Venice Film Festival in 2007, Joe Wright's film starring James McAvoy and Keira Knightley traveled around the world and was awarded BAFTA and Golden Globe awards, including Best Picture, and in the Oscar race managed to win the Best Soundtrack nomination.

The chronotope of the picture is the English province mixed with the urban environment and the completely destroyed parts of France during the Second World War. The story revolves around young Briony (Saoirse Ronan), who, due to her youth, has a rich imagination and often writes plays. She is in love with the servant's son Robbie (James McAvoy), who, in turn, sympathizes with her sister Cecilia (Keira Knightley), who reciprocates his feelings. After her cousin Lola (Juno Temple) is abused, Briony immediately blames Robbie, he is sent to prison, and an unbreakable feud is born between the sisters. A tragic story about love, truth and difficult choices.

This is Cumberbatch's first negative role, the image of a vile and vile man, Paul Marshell, similar to the hero George Wickham from Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice, where he seduced Lydia in order to take revenge on one man, in the end he had to marry her and remain a stranger. with what. The character of Benedict suffers the same fate.

"Stuart: A Past Life", 2007, dir. David Attwood, UK

A story about the relationship between a young writer, a homeless alcoholic and a drug addict. A film adaptation of the biography of Stuart Shorter (Tom Hardy), who, being homeless, opposed police actions against people living on the street, and also helped in the release of Ruth Weiner and John Brock, who created a homeless assistance center.

Benedict Cumberbatch returns to characters who save homeless people. The first such role was Rory from the mini-series “A little over forty,” but then the center for helping homeless people was shown comically. This time the dramatic atmosphere fills the film. The British actor plays writer Alexander Masters, who takes an interest in Stuart Shorter, a homeless man, and is considering writing his biography. However, Benedict’s character rarely shows bright emotions, forcing the hero to fade into the background, since all the laurels are given to Tom Hardy, who sensually and naturally showed Shorter in the most difficult years of his life.

David Attwood does not abandon the documentary film format and at the beginning of the film adds elements of interviews with Shorter’s relatives, played by professional actors. Thus, the director wanted to recreate some moments from the life of the homeless Stewart, giving the film a documentary flavor. Because of the format, realism in the film comes to the fore.

"The Third Star", dir. Hattie Dalton, 2010, UK

Hattie Dalton's debut film premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 2010, eventually receiving a wide variety of reviews from critics. The story revolves around three friends who go on a road trip with their friend (Benedict Cumberbatch) who is dying of cancer. These are the last months of his life, he will never be 30. Over the few days of their journey, they will all raise several topics: friendship, life after death, the meaning of existence.

Despite the tragic fate of the main character and serious topics for conversation, the film is filled with light humor and unexpected characters. Hattie Dalton experiments with effects, periodically slowing down the picture, and sometimes blurring it, losing focus. Such changes on the screen place different accents in the film. Using a static and hand-held camera, he also does not forget about amateur photography: periodically the main character films what is happening on video. This way you can see everything through his eyes.

Landscape scenes in the film fade into the background due to the acting, all the irregularities in some images and the ring composition of the film cease to be so important due to the emotional impact of the acting team. It's important to note that Cumberbatch has been playing with openness and sincerity here since 2006's Amazing Lightness.

"Frankenstein" 2011, Danny Boyle, UK

The theatrical production from the cult British director Danny Boyle is a new adaptation of Mary Shelley's novel.

Russian viewers were able to see the story of Doctor Frankenstein and his creation on the big screen thanks to the National Theater Live program - most of the screenings were broadcast by some cinemas from the Formula Kino network.

This time around, Benedict Cumberbatch shares the role with Jonny Lee Miller, with both actors alternating between playing Victor Frankestein and the Creature, sometimes improvising in their own way. A desperate and distraught person or an abandoned creature who wanted only a drop of love - both actors transform the images of the characters, dramatize, filling the screen with an atmosphere of loneliness and sadness.

Danny Boyle portrays what is happening in Mary Shelley's novel in his own way. With the help of screenwriter Nick Dear, Frankenstein's creature appears to be a sane creature abandoned by his master. Throughout the entire production, the character philosophizes on the topic of God, quoting John Milton, all this is accompanied by compositions by the Underworld group, written specifically for the play: the tracks form a specific depressing and gloomy atmosphere, since, first of all, Mary Shelley’s novel is saturated with horror.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller received the Laurence Olivier Award (a prestigious British theater award) for their acting in Frankenstein.

"Star Trek: Into Darkness" 2013, dir. JJ Abrams, USA

The second part of the Star Trek franchise tells about the new problems of the inhabitants of the Enterprise ship: upon returning to earth, they learn that the activities and principles of their organization have been undermined from within. A new villain appears who can easily manipulate people's minds. Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) faces a difficult challenge to catch the criminal.

The picturesque fantasy of JJ Abrams does not slow down for the second time; the new part is rich in bright, carefully drawn special effects that do not let you get bored even at the end of the picture.

Even actors who have been involved in drama for a long time should work in the fantasy genre. Cumberbatch again plays the negative character, Khaan, but here he is given more screen time and emotions, which his character must carefully hide at certain moments. As a result, Cumberbatch's Khaan turned out to be warlike and domineering, but no worse than his hero Paul Marshell from Atonement.

Benedict Cumberbatch is a world film and television star from Great Britain, whom most viewers associate with Sherlock Holmes, despite the fact that he has starred in a large number of wonderful films and TV series. Critics say Cumberbatch is best at playing geniuses and villains.

The Game of Life, performed by Cumberbatch

Heir to Richard III

Benedict Cumberbatch's birthday is July 19, 1976, and the location is the British capital. It was here that popular television actors Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton had a son. Thanks to his parents, Benedict began to master stage acting from childhood.

It is worth noting that Cumberbatch has several eminent relatives, one of which is His Majesty Richard III. The actor is his grandson in the sixteenth generation.

The family tree of the actor’s family is quite extensive. His grandfather is Henry Cumberbatch, a former submarine officer whose submarine participated in both world wars. Arnold Cumberbatch's great-grandfather's profession was diplomacy. He served as Consul General in Lebanon and Turkey.

First steps on stage

The future Sherlock Holmes received a good education. True, he studied at several schools. At the Harrow educational institution, he began to master the stage. Here Cumberbatch played his first role at the age of thirteen - the fairy queen Titania in the theatrical production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

The talented boy always listened to his parents’ professional advice. For this reason, rehearsals with him were held at a high level, and his performances amazed him with the maturity of his playing.

After graduating from school, Cumberbatch went to Asia, where he taught Tibetan monks English for a year.
After returning to the UK, Benedict was a drama student at the University of Manchester for four years, after which he was enrolled in one of the oldest universities in England - the London Academy of Dramatic Art.

From student love to church marriage (the actor’s personal life)

During his student years, his colleague Olivia Pule became the girlfriend of the future celebrity. The young people dated for twelve years, but in 2011 the couple decided to end their relationship.

Then a new girlfriend appeared in Benedict’s personal life - designer Anna Jones, whose romance did not last even a year.

After finishing filming “The Hobbit,” the actor briefly dated Russian model Ekaterina Elizarova. Journalists caught Cumberbatch with a girl during their joint vacation in Ibiza. The Russian model claimed in an interview that she was having an affair with the British star, but the actor himself denied her words.

During a conversation with reporters in 2013, Benedict said that he lives in the British capital, he is single and has no children, although the actor would not mind having them in the future. Cumberbatch noted that he devotes most of his time to work, and prefers to relax with friends.

There were rumors in the press that the actor was a member of sexual minorities and was interested in men, but there was no confirmation of this information.

Benedict Cumberbatch's wife Sophie Hunter

In 2009, during the filming of the film “Burlesque Tales,” Benedict met Sophie Hunter. For five years they were simply friends, and a romantic relationship between this couple began to develop in 2014, although no one knew about them for a long time.

At the end of autumn of the same year, the wedding section of the Times published an announcement about the engagement of Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter.

Modern Englishmen rarely announce their intention to tie the knot through newspapers, but the actor has always liked this tradition. Benedict noted that he would have used it even if he were the simplest resident of Great Britain.

The newlyweds were married in February 2015 in the Church of Peter and Paul on the English Isle of Wight in Mottistone. The wedding celebration was modest with the participation of forty guests, in particular, close friends of the groom, his colleagues Tom Hiddleston and Martin Freeman.

Two little boys

When photos from Cumberbatch's wedding appeared on the Internet, many noticed the slightly rounded belly of the actor's bride. It turned out that at this time Hunter had already been carrying her future husband’s child under her heart for five months.

The boy was born on June 1, 2015. Happy parents named him Christopher. In an interview, Benedict noted that he became a husband and father in the right order, and is looking forward to the appearance of several more Cumberbabies in the future.

In October of the following year, Benedict Cumberbatch's biography was updated with the news that the famous actor's wife was pregnant again. On March 3, 2017, Sophie gave birth to her second boy, Benedict Cumberbatch's youngest son was named Hal.

Celebrity lifestyle and clothing

Sexiest Male Actor

Before filming the famous television project “Sherlock” began, Cumberbatch prepared very seriously to portray the greatest detective of all time on screen.

He had daily swimming and yoga training. The producers demanded that Benedict lose a lot of weight. The actor was taught violin by his Australian colleague Eos Chater.

In 2013, Empire named Cumberbatch “the world's sexiest male actor” and featured him on the cover of its February issue as Khan Singh from Star Trek Into Darkness.

The following year, Time included Benedict among the 100 most influential people on our planet.
The actor has a great sense of humor. In 2016, Cumberbatch participated in the filming of a video that became a parody of the famous Macintosh computer advertisement, which Steve Jobs commissioned from Steven Spielberg in 1984.

Elegant hooligan

Cumberbatch is considered a serious and intelligent actor. To maintain this image, Benedict prefers a strict English style of dress.

On the red carpet, the actor can be seen in a black tie tuxedo with satin lapels, and for ordinary cocktails he wears colorful and varied suits. In any case, his clothing should have some element of Spencer Hart, such as a jacket or tie. The company's creative director Nick Hart sells entire sets of his clothes to Cumberbatch. On the set of Sherlock, Benedict also wore suits from Spencer Hart.

The actor loves to wear scarves and caps, but not sports baseball caps. His hats always go well with tweed jackets, cardigans, jumpers and shirts. Cumberbatch prefers Coppola caps, which were once worn by commoners in Sicily. It was from there that the fashion for them began. In addition, the actor’s collection contains a lot of checkered eight-bladed boots, which, by the way, were also worn by the famous detective. Cumberbatch wears them on the street, but he wears scarves for any occasion.

In everyday life, the actor can be found in a striped T-shirt and jumper, a wrinkled shirt with suspenders and a suit without a tie. When he's being hooligan, he can go out in public in a jacket, shorts and rubber slippers.

British Star's Royal Talent

Recognition in the theater

Since 2001, Cumberbatch has become a professional theater actor. At first he was taken to the famous Open Theater, located on the territory of Regent's Park, after which he performed on the stages of the Royal National Theatre, Almeida and Royal Court. The first professional award in Cumberbatch's life is the Laurence Olivier Award, which is awarded annually by the London Theater Society. The actor received it for his role in the production of Hedde Gabler.

In 2015, Benedict was lucky enough to play Hamlet in the capital's Barbican. The performance was broadcast live all over the world, including Russia.

Getting started in television and film

Cumberbatch's television career began in 2002 with episodes in Velvet Feet, Fields of Gold and Heartbeat. Benedict made his debut appearance on the big screen in the dramatic film “Kill a King,” where his partner was Tim Roth.

A year later, the actor could be seen in the television project “A little over forty.” Cumberbatch played the son of the main character played by Hugh Laurie.

In 2004, Benedict played in the biopic Hawking, dedicated to the famous physicist. It was this film that gave Cumberbatch his first recognition in cinema. He was nominated for a BAFTA award. He also won the main prize at the television festival in Monte Carlo.

The following year, Benedict was invited to the action-packed television project “Journey to the Ends of the Earth,” in which he became the aristocrat Edmund Talbot.

In 2007, in the drama “Inseparable,” the actor played two roles at once. These were twins whose characters were radically different.

The second BAFTA award was awarded to Benedict for the drama film “Small Island”, and for his role in the dystopia “The Last Enemy” he was nominated for the “Satellite” award.

In 2010, the actor portrayed the famous artist Van Gogh in the documentary film “Portrait Written in Words.”

Sherlock and others

According to the recollections of the producer of the cult television project “Sherlock” Mark Gattis, after he watched the video sent by Cumberbatch for the audition, he realized that he no longer needed to look for actors to play the role of the great detective.

In July 2010, an updated version of the adventures of the famous detective and his friend Dr. Watson premiered on British television. It was unexpected, challenging and talented.

In 2011, Benedict starred in another film adaptation of Frankenstein. Then there was a detective story about the secret services, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy!, where, in addition to Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy and Gary Oldman were involved. For his work in this film at the Raindance festival, Benedict was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.

A year later, the television project “The Empty Crown” was released, where the actor played the role of Shakespeare’s Richard III.
At the same time, the premiere of the first part of “The Hobbit” took place. Cumberbatch got the image of the Necromancer, who is the spirit of Sauron. True, the actor is practically invisible in the film, but his menacing voice is clearly audible. In the second part, Benedict reincarnated as the dragon Smaug. This required motion capture technology, since this monster was completely computer generated, but with the habits and facial expressions of Cumberbatch.

In 2013, the actor played the role of Khan Singh, the main villain of the science-fiction blockbuster Star Trek Into Darkness.

At the same time, he studied all the information about the founder of WikiLeaks Julian Assange, whom he later played in the film “The Fifth Estate.” His intelligent and kind slave owner Ford from the drama “12 Years a Slave” looked good on screen.

In 2014, The Imitation Game, a biopic about the brilliant cryptologist Alan Turing, was released. The film had 8 Oscar nominations, including Best Actor, but this time Cumberbatch was unlucky.

The following year, the premiere of the film “Black Mass” took place, in which Johnny Depp became Benedict’s partner on the set.

One of the actor's latest successes in cinema was the image of Doctor Strange in the sci-fi film about the superhero of the same name.

Cumberbatch is a "racist"

In a 2015 appearance on The Tavis Smiley Show, Benedict shared his thoughts on the lack of support for actors of color in British cinema. American producers supposedly treat them better, and their British colleagues should follow their example.

Cumberbatch had only the best intentions in mind, but after the interview he was called a racist. There was especially a lot of noise about this on social networks.

After some time, the actor apologized for his statements and called himself an idiot. Benedict noted that he had no intention of offending anyone, but simply raised the topic of racial inequality in cinema, but apparently chose the wrong words to convey his message to the audience. Fortunately, this incident was quickly forgotten.

Another scandal occurred with the actor after the premiere of Zoolander 2, directed by Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, where he played a transgender man from the modeling business. Many fans were openly outraged and even created an online petition, which was signed by thousands of loyal Cumberbatch fans.

Oksana Bondarchuk

Columnist for Tricolor TV Magazine

On the actor's birthday: ten of the most striking quotes from Benedict Cumberbatch

On July 19, 1976, the future actor who created one of the most memorable images of Sherlock Holmes, Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch, was born in London. Cumberbatch became a world star at the age of 34, after the release of the series “Sherlock”. At 37, he found his soulmate, playwright Sophie Hunter, and was nominated for an Oscar for his work in The Imitation Game. At the age of 38 he became a father for the first time, and at 40 he had a second son. Benedict celebrates his 41st birthday with his family and considers himself an absolutely happy person. On Cumberbatch's birthday, Tricolor TV Magazine chose the 10 most striking statements from the famous actor.

ABOUT YOURSELF AND PEOPLE

“We are all special. The only question is how strong we are to manifest ourselves - just like on film. I turned out to be not weak, that's all. I played on stage for ten years, I had roles on TV, I acted in films, I was celebrated by the British press and colleagues. But then - hop! And it turned out... You know, one witty reviewer formulated: I Cumberbatched Britain. And then the world. This is really the right word: it was as if I was not there, and I became. I was there, but not really, and then I became needed and appeared. I, against my will, proved that I was needed. He proved without trying to prove anything. Perhaps I am an accident. I live with the feeling that this might not have happened, for some reason I was chosen, I need to continue to live taking this circumstance into account. It's OK. But there’s not much beauty either.”

ABOUT HOW I BECAME AN ACTOR

“I have always had a penchant for clowning, I liked to make my classmates laugh, act out skits, imitate my voice... Often this interfered with the normal flow of the lesson, so they began to involve me in various kinds of events where my talents could be put to good use without distracting anyone, but entertaining."

ABOUT SHERLOCK AND SIMILARITIES TO HIS HEROES

“Holmes is a rare scoundrel and bastard. I'm not quite like that. Assange (hero of the film “The Fifth Estate.” – Ed.) – a dark horse even for those who know him. I am in full view. Romantic young men in television films of the early 2000s. And I’m more reliable than romantic.”

ABOUT LIFE AND OVERCOMING DIFFICULTIES

“Don’t sweat over nonsense. Don't waste your nerves on small things. Always feel your mortality. Feel like it's a gift. Because if we lived forever, we would not be able to feel life. And people like me do not exaggerate their importance to the world. Somewhere deep inside you sits: why do I need fame if I have a life? Just existing is already exciting. You become a minimalist."

ABOUT WOMEN AND SEXUALITY

“A woman should not show off everything she has in order to appear sexy. A woman must use her mind to make me feel smart - and then she will be sexy.”

ABOUT THE ROLE OF JULIAN ASSANGE

“He ignored all my requests for a meeting. The day before filming, when I was trying on a wig, I received a 10-page email from him asking me not to act in this film. (“The Fifth Estate.” – Ed.). He predicted that the real story of the creation of WikiLeaks would definitely be distorted and my participation would turn out to be immoral... And then I doubted: it turned out that I was going to play a real person who did not want this. But, in the end, this is not a documentary... When I watched the finished film, at the end it seemed to me that I was seeing Assange himself on the screen.”

ABOUT SKILL

“In some cases, all it takes is one twitching muscle to loudly declare a great feeling.”

ABOUT LOVE AND WIFE

“Love is amazing luck. To find someone you love, and for that someone to love you back, is an amazing opportunity. And not everyone gets it. It is precisely because now I am confident in my luck that I am ready to talk about it. What happened to Sophie and me, that we met along the way, is a small miracle, considering how businesslike and busy we both are. And I'm incredibly excited and incredibly grateful for that. I remember I used to give an interview where I complained that I wasn’t married yet, that I didn’t have children. Since childhood, I was sure that by the age of thirty I would have a family. And then Sophie appeared... It’s not easy to love me. But Sophie has the situation under control. She is proud of me, my work, she loves me. And that’s the most important thing.”

is the son of actors Timothy Carlton and Wanda Wetham, so it is not at all surprising that he decided to follow in the footsteps of his parents. The leading role in the series brought the Briton worldwide fame. Sherlock, which was first released on July 25, 2010 and has not lost its popularity to this day.

Read the most interesting statements by Benedict Cumberbatch below.

About the new generation of actors

“The current generation of actors exists in a world where a talented newcomer can easily end up starring in Scorsese. You no longer need to prove something to someone for years and slowly climb up, stopping at each step, the way the actors of the previous generation did: Ben Kingsley, Helen Mirren or Anthony Hopkins. Now everything is different: once - and you are at the top. But I'm not sure that's a good thing."

About the ability to hide confidential information

“I’m always forbidden to talk about the plot of Sherlock, The Hobbit, Star Trek. It's written in my contract, and even if you stab me with a knife, I still won't say anything. But if you take hold of my hair, I will immediately fall to my knees and beg for mercy. I just have very sensitive hair follicles.”

About your talent

“I am not a soldier, not a politician, and not a spy. I'm an actor. I can play the piano very little, I can’t play the violin at all, I don’t do programming, I don’t draw like Van Gogh, and I can’t juggle galaxies in my head like Stephen Hawking does. But I can portray it all on screen.”

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About the meaning of life

“The more you move away from your own self, the more interesting life becomes. The search for harmony does not interest me. Constantly stepping out of your comfort zone is what I see as the point.”

About your unusual surname

“My first agent thought that I shouldn’t represent Cumberbatch, and then, after six months of failure, I broke my contract with him and changed my agent. New asked: “Why don’t you ever introduce yourself as Cumberbatch? It draws attention to you."