With an Oscar nomination, leading roles in film and TV, and hordes of adoring fans, Benedict Cumberbatch has ticked all the boxes of the celebrated Hollywood star. And heโs even got the talent to back it up. He recently joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe, adding superhero to an already impressive repertoire that includes a stint on stage as Hamlet and playing the worldโs greatest detective.
This Sunday he dons the red cape of Doctor Strange in your Sunday night movie of the same name. But before you tune into his main Marvel moment, here are a few of the reasons we (like his fans whose collective title we wonโt name here) love Benedict Cumberbatch.
That Voice
Heโs got a voice that sounds like he should be narrating dreams. While he hasnโt quite managed to invade dreams inception-like, he has put his vocal talent to good use with extensive work in radio, narrating audiobooks, and providing the voices for Smaug and the Necromancer in The Hobbit trilogy. In 2018, weโll get to hear him as the voice of Shere Khan in Jungle Book.
Playing Sherlock
One of his greatest roles, and one thatโs brought him plenty of fame and acclaim, is playing Sherlock Holmes in the TV series Sherlock. A modern retelling of Sir Arthur Conan Doyleโs famous detective stories, Cumberbatchโs spot-on performance and his excellent chemistry with co-star Martin Freeman (as Dr. John Watson) is a big part of the showโs success.
Franchise Fundi
Not only does he have three Hobbit movies to his name, heโs also appeared in Star Trek Into Darkness (as its villain, no less) and has now joined the massive Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Joining the MCU
Along with another actor whoโs also played Sherlock Holmes, Robert Downey Jr., we can be sure to see lots more of Cumberbatch as he will appear in Avengers: Infinity War next year with the rest of the Marvel gang. But we donโt have to wait until 2018 to watch him as Dr. Stephen Strange again, because heโll be making a cameo in Thor: Ragnarok, which will be released this year.
Genius Roles
We mean that literally. Not only has Cumberbatch played the shrewd Sherlock on TV, on film heโs depicted real geniuses such as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game (for which he received his Oscar nomination) and Stephen Hawking in Hawking.
Watch Benedict Cumberbatch as brilliant surgeon turned superhero Dr. Stephen Strange in Doctor Strange, your Sunday night movie on 16 July at 20:05 on M-Net.
Not a superhero superfan? We have two other Sunday night movie selections for you.
On M-Net Movies Premiere at 20:30, send chills down your spine with sci-fi horror Morgan.
On M-Net at 22:50, watch French director Jean-Pierre Amรฉrisโ adaptation of Victor Hugoโs novel, The Man Who Laughs.