26
/
chatfest with
Hollywood stars
HOT
TOPIC
Man of
the moment
ACTOR AND SOCIAL MEDIA DARLING
BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH EXPLAINS
HOW HE STAYS CENTERED AMID ALL
THE ATTENTION AND REVEALS WHAT
HE’S TRULY THANKFUL FOR
BY RUBEN V. NEPALES
Benedict Cumberbatch’s
Britishness — the cool reserve,
accentuated by the scholarly
glasses and the formal tone
of voice, which is surprisingly
soothing — occasionally gives
way to another stereotypically
English quality: dry wit. On the
day we met, the 38-year-old
actor had just arrived in Los
Angeles from London but jet
lag couldn’t put a damper on his
British humor.
Sporting a blazer and what
many of his rabid fans, upon
seeing online photos, described
as his “favorite plum pants,”
Benedict had good reason
to be in high spirits. He’s in
the running for best actor
honors this awards season on
the strength his compelling
portrayal of World War II
cryptographer Alan Turing in
director Morten Tyldum’s
The
Imitation Game.
He’s a busy man. The actor
who has the title role in the
TV series
Sherlock
and stars as
Richard III in the TV mini-series
The Hollow Crown
is amassing
quite an A-list resume, from
current hits like
The Hobbit:
The Battle of the Five Armies
and
Penguins of Madagascar
to
forthcoming releases like
Black
Mass
and
The Lost City of Z.
How did you react when
you first heard that some
of your fans call themselves
“Cumberbitches”?
My fans are incredibly smart,
self-regulating, intelligent, witty,
creative, inspiring, young and
young in spirit and determined.
They come from both sexes.
As far as what some
called themselves early on,
it just caught on. It was a
catchy phrase and I only
corrected it gently. These
are smart, empowered
and expressive women.
They weren’t intentionally
belittling themselves or their
sex by calling themselves
“Cumberbitches”.
But I just said, “Maybe we
can think of a slightly softer
name for a collective noun
for people who like my work.”
That was the idea behind it.
Clockwise: Benedict with
fiancée Sophie Hunter; scenes from
The Imitation Game
