Benedict Cumberbatch Quick Info | |
---|---|
Height | 6 ft |
Weight | 78 kg |
Date of Birth | July 19, 1976 |
Zodiac Sign | Cancer |
Spouse | Sophie Hunter |
Benedict Cumberbatch is an English actor, theatre artist, producer, and voice actor who is best known for having been cast as Sherlock Holmes in the series Sherlock since 2010, a role that has won him accolades like Primetime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie”, Satellite Award for “Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film”, and National Television Award for “Best TV Detective”. In addition to that, he has bagged the Laurence Olivier Award for “Best Actor” for Frankenstein and received an Academy Award nomination for “Best Actor” for his role as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game, a 2014 historical drama film. He was included in the annual list of the “100 most influential people in the world” curated by Time magazine in 2014 and was appointed a CBE in the 2015 Birthday Honours for services to the performing arts and to charity.
Born Name
Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch
Nick Name
The Batch, Ben, BC
Sun Sign
Cancer
Born Place
London, England, United Kingdom
Residence
Hampstead, North London, England, United Kingdom
Nationality
Education
Cumberbatch started going to boarding school at the age of 8. He studied at Brambletye School in West Sussex and Harrow School, from where he has an art scholarship.
His interest in acting began at Harrows wherein he participated in various Shakespearean works.
After completing school, he volunteered for an English teaching job at a Tibetan Monastery in Darjeeling, India, which lasted for one year.
As soon as he returned, he started pursuing his career in acting by taking Drama classes from the University of Manchester wherein he has a BA degree in Drama and followed it by training from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, from where he graduated with an MA in Classical Acting.
Occupation
Actor, Film Producer, Voice Artist, Theatre Artist
Family
- Father – Timothy Carlton (Actor)
- Mother – Wanda Ventham (Actress)
- Siblings – Tracy Peacock (Step-Sister)
- Others – Henry Carlton Cumberbatch (Paternal Grandfather) (Participated in both World Wars as Submarine Officer), Henry Arnold Cumberbatch (Paternal Great Grandfather) (Consul General for Queen Victoria in Turkey and Lebanon), Pauline Ellen Laing Congdon (Paternal Grandmother), Frederick Howard Ventham (Maternal Grandfather), Gladys Frances Holtham (Maternal Grandmother)
Manager
Benedict Cumberbatch has been signed with –
- Conway Van Gelder Grant Ltd., Talent Agency, London, England, United Kingdom
- United Talent Agency, Talent Agency, Beverly Hills, California, United States
Build
Athletic
Height
6 ft or 183 cm
Weight
78 kg or 172 lbs
Girlfriend / Spouse
Benedict Cumberbatch has been romantically linked with –
- Olivia Poulet (1999-2011) – Benedict first met actress and screenwriter Olivia Poulet at the University of Manchester in 1999 where Benedict was studying drama. Subsequently, they fell in love and started dating each other. Together, the duo appeared in a TV show, namely, Sherlock. The couple announced their breakup in 2011, after having been in a 12-year long relationship.
- Anna Jones (2011-2012) – Benedict dated fashion designer Anna Jones from 2011 to 2012.
- Lydia Hearst (2012) – Benedict was RUMORed to have had a fling with American actress and fashion model, Lydia Hearst in March 2012.
- Liv Tyler (2012) – Benedict was RUMORed to be dating American actress and former child model, Liv Tyler nearing August 2012.
- Lara Pulver (2012) – Benedict was RUMORed to have had an encounter with actress Lara Pulver in October 2012.
- Katia Elizarova (2012) – Benedict was RUMORed to have had a fling with Russian model and actress Katia in late 2012.
- Charlotte Asprey (2013) – Benedict had an encounter with Charlotte Asprey when they met during his birthday bash at London’s swanky club Cirque Le Soir.
- Dakota Johnson (2013) – In December 2013, Benedict was RUMORed to have had a fling with actress Dakota Johnson.
- Sophie Hunter (2014–Present) – Benedict met theater director Sophie Hunter in 2009 on the set of Burlesque Fairytales. Their actual romance started in 2014 when Benedict was busy shooting for various films. The couple got engaged in a private ceremony in November 2014. They finally tied the knot on February 14, 2015, at the 12th century Church of St. Peter and St. Paul on the Isle of Wight and subsequently welcomed their first child in June 2015.
Race / Ethnicity
White
Benedict Cumberbatch is of English, Welsh, Scottish, Cornish, French, Swiss-French, Swedish or German, and Dutch descent.
Hair Color
Dyed Brown
He has naturally Blonde hair color.
Eye Color
Blue-Green
Distinctive Features
- Rich baritone voice
- Blue-green eyes
- Natural method acting
- A tiny wrinkle on the nose
- Often plays highly intelligent and gifted characters
- Sharp cheekbones
Shoe Size
His shoe size is speculated to be 12 (US).
Brand Endorsements
Benedict has appeared and narrated several TV commercials such as MG GS “Chinese Car Advertisement” (2015), Dunlop (2014), Google + Tom “Campaign” (2012), Jaguar Alive (2012), Sony Handycam NEX-5N (2012), Jaguar XFR Growler (2011) and Hiscox “There is a light” (2012).
Religion
Buddhism
Best Known For
His portrayal of Sherlock Holmes in the hit BBC TV series Sherlock (2010-Present), as the villain Khan Noonien Singh in Star Trek into Darkness (2013) and as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game (2014).
First Film
As an Actor
He appeared in the short film Hills Like White Elephants in 2002 for his role as The Man.
He then, played as The Royalist in his next film To Kill a King in the year 2003.
As a Producer
He starred as well as produced the 2013 short film Little Favour which was made on a budget of $870,000. It is currently available on iTunes.
First TV Show
Benedict portrayed the role as Charles / Party Guest / Toby Fisher on ITV’s police drama series Heartbeat from 1998 to 2004 in just 3 episodes.
Personal Trainer
According to Independent.co.uk, he follows the 5:2 plan in his daily routine, which means he eats anything he likes for five days, and for the remaining two days, he consumes less than 600 calories.
Benedict Cumberbatch Favorite Things
- Restaurant – Osteria Emilia at Fleet Road, Hampstead
- Place – Galaxidi of Greece, Villedieu in the South of France and New York
- TV Shows – The Wire (2002-2008), The Office (2005-2013), The West Wing (1999-2006), Mad Men (2007-2015), The Sopranos (1999-2007), Breaking Bad (2008-2013), The Killing (2011-2014)
- Authors – Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Charles Dickens, Paul Auster
- Actors – Jack Nicholson, Steve McQueen, Harrison Ford, Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen, Stephen Dillane
- Sport – Skydiving, hot-air ballooning, scuba diving, snowboarding, horse-riding, and motor-bikes
- Filmmakers – Stanley Kubrick, Michael Winterbottom, Steven Soderbergh, John Hughes, Alfred Hitchcock
- Movies – Ghostbusters (1984), Annie Hall (1977), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Singin’ in the Rain (1952), Wings of Desire (1987), and many more.
- Holiday Dish – Brussels Sprouts
- Color – Blue
Source – IMDb, BuzzFeed, Telegraph, YouTube
Benedict Cumberbatch Facts
- He suffers from a disease called “heterochromia.” Therefore, his eyes have different colors. It generally changes from blue to green.
- He captured his audition on an iPhone in his friend’s kitchen for his role as Khan in Star Trek into Darkness.
- He thinks that he resembles Sid the Sloth from Ice Age.
- He almost rejected to star as Sherlock Holmes because he believed that the remake would be Cheap and Cheesy.
- Before becoming an actor, he was thinking to become a lawyer.
- Steven Spielberg described him as The Best Sherlock on Screen.
- Benedict couldn’t believe when Harrison Ford expressed that he is a big fan of him.
- His real parents appeared in one of the episodes in the Sherlock TV series.
- There are more than 100 million words of Fan Fiction dedicated to him.
- For his portrayal of Alan Turing in The Imitation Game, he received unanimous critical acclaim and subsequently earned his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
- Until 2015, he has always returned empty-handed from these prestigious award shows wherein he has six BAFTA nominations, five Screen Actors Guild Award nominations, and two Golden Globe Award nominations.
- In June 2015, for his contribution to the performing arts and charity, he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by Queen Elizabeth II during the Birthday Honours.
- He has been described as an expert in photobombing and has been given the title of King of photobombs by various media outlets.
- His female fans were called Cumberbitches which Benedict didn’t like and felt it insulted them, he then subsequently softened it to a more appropriate term Cumberpeople.
- He has been voted as the ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ in Empire and People magazine’s annual list on many occasions.
- His life’s principle is Nothing is Impossible. The word Impossible itself says, ‘I’m possible.’
- He likes to paint large oil canvases and is known to be a prolific painter. He has recently donated his artworks to various charities and organizations.
- In 2005, when he was in South Africa with his two friends, he got kidnapped and was held at gunpoint. Furthermore, he was taken to an unidentified location and was liberated without any explanation from the kidnappers.
- He was featured on the list of 100 Makers of the 21st Century by The Sunday Times in 2014 and the publication has heralded him as this generation’s Sir Laurence Olivier.
- He was featured in Time magazine’s annual list of 100 Most Influential People in the World for the year 2014.
- He is close friends with Keira Knightley, James McAvoy, Tom Hardy, Matthew Goode, Zachary Quinto, and Eddie Redmayne.
- Since October 2014, Madame Tussauds London is showcasing the Benedict Cumberbatch wax figure.
- He is a Social Worker who represents The Prince’s Trust as its ambassador and supports various philanthropic activities that involve helping deprived young people.
- After playing the role of Stephen Hawking in 2004 in the TV film Hawking, he has become the representative of the Motor Neurone Disease Association and in 2014, he participated in the organization’s Ice Bucket Challenge.
- When he was 12, he played the role of Titania, Queen of the Fairies, in the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
- He was not the first choice to play Doctor Strange in the Marvel Studio films. Joaquin Phoenix was first offered the role, after whose rejection, it went to Benedict.
- He portrayed the character of Greville Wynne, a British engineer and businessman, in the 2020 historical drama film, The Courier, in which he co-starred alongside the likes of Merab Ninidze, Rachel Brosnahan, Jessie Buckley, and Angus Wright.
- In February 2022, he was featured on the cover of Vanity Fair‘s 28th annual Hollywood issue.
- In February 2022, Benedict received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- In the past, Benedict almost changed his name to “Ben Carlton” because it was much easier to say.
- In May 2023, former chef Jack Bissell broke into Benedict’s house while he was inside with his wife Sophie and reportedly shouted, “I know you’ve moved here, I hope it burns down”. Jack was later arrested and he pleaded guilty to criminal damage. A three-year restraining order was issued against him which prevented him to go anywhere near Benedict.
- Benedict is not on social media.
BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH have a weird face.
Honestly before playing Sherlock Holmes he was just another struggler, average looking white guy in Hollywood
Benedict Cumberbatch has a weird & ugly face. It’s quite long & he looks like a cartoon character. Jake Gyllenhaal is way more attractive & talented than Benedict Cumberbatch. Jake should have been Doctor Strange & let’s not forget Benedict have a ugly body too. Jake Gyllenhaal deserves an Oscar. Jake is the best.