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

- the son of actors Timothy Carlton and Wanda Wetham, therefore, it is not at all surprising that he decided to follow in the footsteps of his parents. worldwide fame the British brought the main role in the series sherlock, which was first released on July 25, 2010 and has not lost its popularity so far.

Read the most interesting quotes from Benedict Cumberbatch below.

On the new generation of actors

“The current generation of actors exists in a world where a talented newcomer can easily find himself in leading role at Scorsese. You no longer need to prove something to someone for years and slowly climb up, stopping at each step, as 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 it's good."

About the ability to hide confidential information

“I am always forbidden to talk about the plot of Sherlock, the Hobbit, Star Trek. It's written in my contract, and even if you stick a knife in me, I still won't say anything. But it is enough for you to take up 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, I am not a politician, and I am 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 all this on the screen.

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About the meaning of life

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

About his unusual last name

“My first agent thought I shouldn’t introduce myself as Cumberbatch, and then, after half a year of failures, I ended the contract with him and changed my agent. The new one asked, “Why don’t you ever introduce yourself as Cumberbatch? It draws attention to you."

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

All life is a game performed by Cumberbatch

Heir to Richard III

Benedict Cumberbatch's birthday is July 19, 1976, and the place is the British capital. It was here that the popular television actors Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton had a son. Thanks to his parents, Benedict began to master stage skills 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 genealogical tree of the actor's family is quite branched. His grandfather is Henry Cumberbatch, a former submarine officer whose submarine served in both world wars. Arnold Cumberbatch's great-grandfather's profession was diplomacy. As Consul General, he served in Lebanon and Turkey.

First steps on stage

The future Sherlock Holmes received a good education. True, he studied at several schools. IN educational institution Harrow, he began to master the stage. Here Cumberbatch played his first role at the age of thirteen - the fairy queen Titania in theater production"A dream in a summer night".

A talented boy always listened to professional advice parents. For this reason, rehearsals with him took place on high level, and the performances were striking in the maturity of the game.

After graduating from school, Cumberbatch went to Asia, where whole year learned English language Tibetan monks.
After returning to the UK, Benedict was a student for four years theater faculty University of Manchester, after which he was enrolled in one of the oldest universities in England - the London Academy dramatic art.

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

In his student years, his colleague Olivia Poole became the girl of the future celebrity. Young people met 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, an affair with which did not last even a year.

After finishing filming in The Hobbit, the actor briefly dated Russian model Ekaterina Elizarova. Journalists caught Cumberbatch with a girl during their joint holiday in Ibiza. The Russian model in an interview claimed that she was having an affair with a 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 is not averse to having them in the future. Cumberbatch noted that he devotes most of his time to work, and prefers to relax with friends.

Rumors got into the press that the actor is a representative of sexual minorities and he is interested in men, but there was no confirmation of this information.

Benedict Cumberbatch's wife Sophie Hunter

In 2009, while filming Burlesque Tales, Benedict met Sophie Hunter. For five years they were just friends, and romantic relationship between this pair began to develop in 2014, although about them for a long time No one knew.

In late autumn of the same year, the wedding section of The Times published an announcement of 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 taken advantage of it, even being the simplest resident of Great Britain.

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

Two sons

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 been carrying the child of her future husband 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 in the future he is waiting for the appearance of several more Cumberbabies.

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

Celebrity lifestyle and clothing

Sexiest Male Actor

Before the shooting of the famous television project "Sherlock" Cumberbatch was preparing for the embodiment on the screen of the main detective of all times and peoples very seriously.

He had daily swimming and yoga training. The producers demanded that Benedict lose a lot of weight. The actor was taught to play the violin by his colleague from Australia, Eos Chater.

In 2013, Empire named Cumberbatch "Sexiest Male Actor" and featured him as Khan Singh from Star Trek Into Darkness on the cover of their February issue.

IN next year The publication "Time" included Benedict in the hundred 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 advertisement for the Macintosh computer, which in 1984 Steve Jobs ordered from Steven Spielberg.

Elegant bully

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 black tie tuxedo with satin lapels, and he goes to ordinary cocktail parties in colorful and varied costumes. In any case, he must have some kind of Spencer Hart item in his attire, such as a jacket or tie. The creative director of the company, Nick Hart, sells entire sets of his clothes to Cumberbatch. On the set of Sherlock, Benedict also wore Spencer Hart suits.

The actor likes to wear scarves and caps, but not sports baseball caps. His hats always go well with tweed jackets, cardigans, jumpers and shirts. Cumberbatch favors the coppola caps once worn by commoners in Sicily. It was from there that the fashion for them began. In addition, the actor's collection has a lot of checkered eight-blade ones, 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, wrinkled shirt with suspenders and a suit without a tie. When he is a hooligan, he can go out to people in a jacket, shorts and rubber slippers.

British Star's Royal Talent

Recognition in the theater

Since 2001, Cumberbatch has been 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 theater, Almeida and Royal Court. The first professional award in the life of Cumberbatch 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 "Gedde 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's debut appearance on the big screen happened in the dramatic film Kill the King, where Tim Roth was his partner.

A year later, the actor could be seen in the television project "A Little 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 film recognition. He was nominated for a BAFTA award. He also won the main prize at the Monte Carlo TV Festival.

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. They were twins, whose characters were radically different.

The second BAFTA award was given to Benedict for the drama film "Little Island", and for his role in the dystopia "The Last Enemy" he was nominated for the "Satellite" award.

In 2010, the actor reincarnated as famous artist Van Gogh in the documentary "A Portrait Painted with Words".

Sherlock and others

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

In July 2010, British television premiered updated version adventure famous detective and his friend Dr. Watson. It was unexpected, defiant and talented.

In 2011, Benedict starred in another adaptation of Frankenstein. Then there was a detective about the special services "Spy Get Out!", where, in addition to Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy and Gary Oldman were busy. For his work in this picture at the festival "Raindance" 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, which is the spirit of Sauron. True, the actor is practically invisible in the picture, but his formidable voice is clearly audible. In the second part, Benedict reincarnated as the dragon Smaug. This required motion capture technology, as this monster was completely computerized, but with the habits and facial expressions of Cumberbatch.

In 2013, the actor got the role of Khan Singh - the main villain of the fantastic blockbuster "Star Trek: Retribution".

In parallel, 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 the screen.

In 2014, the biopic The Imitation Game was released about the brilliant cryptologist Alan Turing. The picture had 8 Oscar nominations, including Best Actor, but this time Cumberbatch was out of luck.

The following year, the premiere of the film "Black Mass" took place, in which Benedict's partner in film set became Johnny Depp.

One of recent successes actor in the movie was the image of Dr. Strange in the eponymous fantastic film about a superhero.

Cumberbatch is a "racist"

In 2015, on The Tavis Smiley Show, Benedict shared his thoughts on how people of color feel uncomfortable in British cinema. American producers supposedly treat them better, and British colleagues should follow their example.

Cumberbatch had only the best of intentions in mind, but after the interview, he began to be called a racist. Especially a lot of noise about this was in in social networks.

After a while, the actor apologized for his remarks and called himself an idiot. Benedict noted that he did not intend to offend anyone, but simply raised the topic of racial inequality in the cinema, but, apparently, he 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 "Model Male 2", which was directed by Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, where he reincarnated as a transgender from modeling business. Many fans were openly outraged and even created a petition on the Internet, which was signed by thousands of devoted Cumberbatch fans.

On July 19, on the same day as Vasily Livanov, the beloved domestic performer of the role of Sherlock Holmes, celebrates the birthday of the British Sherlock - Benedict Cumberbatch. Over the past 12 months, a lot of events have happened in the life of the actor. In honor of the holiday, we would like to recall the most important of them.

2013 was a triumphant year for Cumberbatch. All the films with his participation thundered: "Star Trek: Retribution", "12 Years a Slave", "The Fifth Estate", "August" and the first two parts of "The Hobbit". Compared to 2013, 2014 was Cumberbatch's year off the big screen. With the exception of The Penguins of Madagascar, in which the actor gave his magical voice to the wolf Classifield, and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, in which the actor played the dragon Smaug (in a suit with motion sensors), only one film was released last year with with Benedict - "The Imitation Game". In it, "Cumber" played the main role - the brilliant mathematician Alan Turing. The video on the MTV YouTube channel, in which Benedict brilliantly “imitates” Jack Nicholson, Christopher Walken, Matthew McConaughey and 8 other actors during the promo for The Imitation Game, has collected more than 5.5 million views.

For his role in The Game, Cumberbatch was nominated for all the most prestigious film awards: Oscar, Golden Globe, British Academy Film Award (BAFTA) and Screen Actors Guild Award. In fact, I didn't get any of them. "Oscar" went to another Briton - Eddie Redmayne for the role of scientist Stephen Hawking in the inspiring and touching film "Hawking's Universe." Cubmerbatch had already played Hawking in the 2004 BBC film of the same name.

Everything You Didn't Know About The Imitation Game

On February 5, a film by Morten Tyldum was released in Russia, in which one of the most favored actors of our time and future father, Benedict Cumberbatch, plays the main role.

There are jokes in fan circles about Cumberbatch's alien origins. Of course, they are generated by the "extraterrestrial" appearance of the actor. In 2017, the release of the film "Justice League" - a film adaptation of DC comics is planned. Benedict is credited with playing the character Martian Manhunter, a superhero originally from Mars whose powers include telepathy, superhuman strength and speed, and shapeshifting (the ability to change appearance). Unfortunately, the actor does not confirm the rumors. But it is known for certain that Ben is approved for the role of another hero - Doctor Strange. This character is from comic book publisher-competitor DC - Marvel. Doctor Stephen Strange is a brilliant but arrogant surgeon who finds a second life after falling under the care of a sorcerer and learning magic to protect the world from evil. Cumberbatch outperformed Dr. Tom Hardy, Joaquin Phoenix (to be fair, Phoenix turned down the role himself), Ewan McGregor, Jared Leto and Ryan Gosling.

Why do we like ugly men

Benedict Cumberbatch, Vincent Cassel, Javier Bardem - these men definitely do not shine with beauty, but for some reason they still attract millions of fans. We tried to figure out what their secret is.

On November 5, 2014, the actor’s fans from all over the world shed more than one liter of tears: in The Times newspaper, in the “Forthcoming Marriages” section, a note was published about the engagement of “Benedict, son of Wanda and Timothy Cumberbatch from London, and Sophie, daughters of Catherine Hunter of Edinburgh and Charles Hunter of London." Sophie is an actress, theater and opera director. The couple met back in 2009. The next blow for Ben's fans was the news of his fiancee's pregnancy, and the wedding of Benedict and Sophie, which took place on Valentine's Day, February 14, 2015, finished them off. In the media and social networks, the child was immediately dubbed "cumber-baby". "Cumber-baby" was born in mid-June. The exact date of his (this is a boy) birth and the name of the parents have not yet been disclosed.

In June, Benedict acquired not only the title of father. On June 13, the actor became a Commander of the British Empire class CBE (Commander of the British Empire - Commander of the British Empire). The awards ceremony was timed to coincide with the official birthday of Elizabeth II. The Queen noted his merits in the field of dramatic art and charitable work.

This year, after a long break, Cumberbatch returns to the theater. Last time he appeared on stage at the Royal National Theater in Frankenstein, a production directed by Danny Boyle (the one who won an Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire). This time, Benedict will play Hamlet in a production at the London Barbican Theatre. The performance will run for 12 weeks - from August 5 to October 31. Even before its premiere, "Hamlet" became the most anticipated theatrical event recent years- Tickets were sold out in August last year. Especially for fans who will come to London for great play with your favorite actor in the title role, The World According To Benedict has prepared an interactive map. It shows Benedict's filming locations in London and locations he mentions in his interviews. Locations are grouped by movies: The Imitation Game, Parade's End, Sherlock, Atonement, Spy Get Out, Benedict's London. It is interesting to walk around even if you are not in London.

Over the past 2013, the face of Benedict Cumberbatch did not leave the movie screens for a minute: he managed to be seen in the image of the villain Khaan in the Star Trek: Retribution franchise by JJ Abrams, as the creator of Wikileaks Julian Assange in Bill Condon's film The Fifth Estate, in the role of a decent slave owner in the film "12 Years a Slave" by Steve McQueen, and during new year holidays the actor managed to appear on TV: new season 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 been developing for many years, starting with small works that are as important as his future films.

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

The first memorable role of the British actor is the role of the eldest son Rory in the mini-series A Little Over Forty, in which he played along with Hugh Laurie and Anna Chancellor.

The series follows Paul Slippery (Hugh Laurie), a general practitioner whose wife, after years of raising three sons, finally returns to work. On this occasion, the husband is a little nervous, 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 marriage problems, topics of employment and youth also pop up, since Paul has three sons, two of whom cannot share the girl between themselves.

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

Thus, thanks to all the absurdity and slight absurdity, it turns out good comedy, consisting of jokes on the topic of sex, where great importance has a specific British humor.

"Atonement" 2007, dir. Joe Wright, UK

Opening at the Venice Film Festival in 2007, Joe Wright's film, starring James McAvoy and Keira Knightley, went around the world and won BAFTA and Golden Globe awards, including " Best movie”, and in the Oscar race she managed to become the winner of the nomination “Best Soundtrack”.

The chronotope of the picture is the English province mixed with the urban environment and the shattered parts of France during the Second World War. The story revolves around young Briony (Saoirse Ronan), who, due to her youthfulness, 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 loves him back. After her cousin Lola (Juno Temple) is abused, Briony immediately blames Robbie for it, he goes to jail, and an unbreakable enmity is born between the sisters. tragic story about love, truth and the difficulties of choice.

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

Stewart: Past Life, 2007, dir. David Attwood, UK

A story about the relationship between a young writer, a homeless alcoholic and a drug addict. Screen 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 center for helping the homeless.

Benedict Cumberbatch returns to characters rescuing the homeless. The first such role was just Rory from the mini-series A Little Over Forty, but then the center for helping the homeless was shown comically. This time, the dramatic atmosphere overwhelms the film. British actor plays the writer Alexander Masters, who is interested in Stuart Shorter, a homeless man, and is considering writing his biography. However, Benedict's character rarely shows vivid emotions, forcing the hero to fade into the background, since all laurels are given to Tom Hardy, who sensually and naturally showed Shorter in the most difficult years his life.

David Attwood does not abandon the documentary format and at the beginning of the film adds elements of interviews with Shorter's relatives, who are 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. Due to the format, realism in the picture comes to the fore.

Third Star, dir. Hattie Dalton, 2010, UK

Hattie Dalton's debut picture premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 2010, eventually receiving a variety of critical reviews. The story revolves around three friends who go on a journey with a friend dying of cancer (Benedict Cumberbatch). This recent months of his life, he will never be 30. Over the course of several days of their journey, they will all raise several topics in a company: friendship, life after death, the meaning of life.

Despite tragic fate the main character and serious topics for conversation, the film is full of 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 manual camera, he also does not forget about amateur photography: periodically main character captures the event on video. Thus, one can see everything through his eyes.

The landscape scenes in the film fade into the background due to the acting, all the irregularities in some images and the circular 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 here openly and sincerely since Amazing Ease (2006).

Frankenstein 2011, Danny Boyle, UK

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

The audience in Russia was able to see the story of Dr. Frankenstein and his creation on the big screen thanks to the National Theater Live program - most of the shows were broadcast by some cinemas from the Formula Cinema network.

This time around, Benedict Cumberbatch is sharing his role with Jonny Lee Miller, with both actors taking turns playing Victor Frankenstein and the Creature, occasionally 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 heroes, 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 creation looks like a sane creature abandoned by its owner. Throughout the production, the character philosophizes on the theme of God, quoting John Milton, all this is accompanied by Underworld compositions 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 win the Laurence Olivier Award theater award) for acting in "Frankenstein".

Star Trek: Retribution 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: returning to earth, they learn that the activities and principles of their organization have been undermined from the inside. A new villain appears who can easily manipulate people's minds. Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) has a difficult test to catch the criminal.

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

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