1. He almost didn’t become an actor
At the urging of his parents, a young Benedict originally planned to become a lawyer. Before studying Drama at Manchester University, he also spent a gap year teaching English in a Tibetan monastary.
2. He's licensed to marry you
Movie star, Emmy-winning actor and.... gay wedding officiator. Benedict became legally ordained so that he could marry his friends Seth Cummings and Rob Rinder at their wedding in Ibiza last year.
3. His ancestors were owners of slaves during the slave trade
The 12 Years a Slave star has discussed how his name became common among families from the Caribbean because of his ancestors' roles on the island. He also confessed that his mother encouraged him not to use the name Cumberbatch in his professional career in case of a negative reaction.
The 12 Years a Slave star has discussed how his name became common among families from the Caribbean because of his ancestors' roles on the island. He also confessed that his mother encouraged him not to use the name Cumberbatch in his professional career in case of a negative reaction.
The Sherlock star revealed in an interview that he nearly lost his life while filming BBC mini-series To the Ends of the Earth in South Africa. A gang of six men kidnapped him and co-star Denise Black, but Benedict managed to argue his way out. He said of the ordeal: "It's made me want to live a life slightly less ordinary."
5. His favourite director is Stanley Kubrick
But it would take him 30,000 words to explain why. In fact, he did exactly that for his university dissertation.
6. He wants to be 'the King'
Benedict admitted that if he could play anyone in a film, it would be Elvis.
7. He does a mean Alan Rickman impression
David Tennant, Bruce Willis, Chewbacca... is there anyone Benedict can't impersonate? His most revered impression is Alan Rickman, who he voiced as his Harry Potter character Snape in The Simpsons episode 'Love is a Many-Splintered Thing'.
Benedict attended Harrow school on an arts scholarship and worked on huge oil paintings in his spare time. Since gaining fame, the altruistic actor has donated several small, self-portrait drawings of himself to charity auctions.
9. He has heterochromia iridis
Like fellow actors Keifer Sutherland and Simon Pegg, Benedict Cumberbatch's eyes are actually two different colours. Benedict's specific condition is known as sectoral heterochromia and is responsible for how his eyes seem to change from green to blue, depending on the light.
But he dyed it black for his roles as Sherlock Holmes and Khan in Star Trek Into Darkness. Not one to shy away from a physical transformation, the actor famously ate 4,000 calories a day to bulk up for his Star Trek perfomance. The hardest part according to Benedict? Losing the weight afterwards.
11. His fans scare him, sometimes
Benedict was left shocked when he discovered a neighbour was live-tweeting his movements in his London home. The 38-year-old has said the concept of celebrity often worries him, and that: "sometimes it is bearable and sometimes it isn’t”.
Both Benedict's parents, Timothy Carlton (real name Timothy Carlton Congdon Cumberbatch) and Wanda Ventham, are actors themselves. They've even starred alongisde the man himself as his on-screen parents in Sherlock's third season: Benedict said he was "so proud of them" but admitted "it was kind of nerve-wracking".
13. He’s starred in Heartbeat, twice
Yes, really.
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