Benedict Cumberbatch covers the latest issue of The Hollywood Reporter, mostly to promote The Power of the Dog (although he has other films coming out). The piece opens with a story which cracked me up! To learn how to play a cowboy in Montana in TPOTD, Bendy spent months working on a ranch, learning how to play the banjo, learning how to roll a cigarette with one hand, learning how to castrate a bull, and learning how to… whistle. Apparently, Bendy is not a natural whistler. Neither am I! So he had to practice and apparently, the whistling part of the role was what he kept f–king up. The cameras were rolling, everyone was mic’d up and then Bendy would just weakly blow soundless air between his lips. LMAO. The whole THR piece is pretty good, even though Bendy doesn’t talk about personal stuff:
On ‘The Power of the Dog’: “It’s a lesson in how tangled up you can become, how toxic masculinity can become if your true identity is not allowed or tolerated or celebrated or accepted.”
He would go without bathing for days to play the cowboy: While shooting, he’d also go long stretches, six days or so, without washing, as his character does, and listen to Jonny Greenwood music on his way to set — the Radiohead guitarist eventually wrote the film’s score, but Cumberbatch was listening to Greenwood’s There Will Be Blood score and other orchestral music.
On toxic masculinity: “Tenderness, surely that’s the answer and the thing that needs to be addressed… Whether that’s raising men as feminists, whether that’s understanding that there is a reason behind your emotions … Emotions need to be addressed and understood, rather than just put out there into the world in violence or language or an action that just permeates a toxic culture.”
He had his wife, children and parents with him in New Zealand as he filmed: “It was tough to watch that wave going across Europe, knowing it was going to be a sh-t show from how [the U.K.] government responded.”
He’s not going to answer questions about fatherhood: “It’s just a Trojan horse to let people point lenses at [my family] and talk to me about them or farm out quotes about them. And I’ve just got to move on from that.”
He enjoys working on Marvel movies: “I feel fortunate that I’m part of a franchise that keeps wanting more of this character I play. And I really enjoy playing that character. I don’t feel it’s ‘One for them,’ as in, ‘This is more arduous and it’s just so I can do the more esoteric art house work.’”
On Scarlett Johansson’s lawsuit against Disney: “It’s sad what’s going on between the lawyers. Just the verbiage and the accusations of, ‘Put it in a global pandemic context.’ The whole thing’s just a bit of a mess. We’re trying to understand what the revenue streams should be for artists that contribute to the billion-dollar business that is Disney. And it has to be contractualized. How does an artist’s normal compensation with box office bonuses, how does it work? It’s a new paradigm, and it’s a very complex one. No one saw this coming, and no one should use hindsight to say, ‘Well, it should have been done.’ That was the first of these films that was going to get a cinematic release during the pandemic and got stalled and stalled and stalled. It’s very new territory.”
I’m surprised he answered the question about ScarJo and her lawsuit. I wonder if Disney/Marvel asked their actors (the ones still under contract) to not say anything and I wonder if Bendy just decided to sort of back Scarlett. Because that’s what he’s doing – he’s saying this sh-t needs to be worked out, not just for Scarlett, but for all actors, because the industry is in flux. It’s also gross that he didn’t shower for days on end while they were shooting – I get that it’s “realism” and “Method” and whatever, but still. I like what he says about emotions and toxic masculinity though. Bendy is always good with those kinds of conversations.
Photos courtesy of Getty, cover courtesy of THR.
His performance in The Power of the Dog is AMAZING! Everyone in the film is giving good work but I have been thinking about his performance for days. It is the definition of “towering”. One of the film reviewers for Laineygossip once called him a screen tyrant- as is he is so magnificent that he takes over the screen, and in this one it is absolutely true.
The bathing story is a lot. I mean, why? How did it add to his performance? Some actors are a lot
” he is so magnificent that he takes over the screen, and in this one it is absolutely true.”
I think this is absolutely true and explains why he is sometimes miscast. He fits best in big, dark, powerful roles that allow him command the screen.
He’s also really good in lighter comedic roles, Starter for 10 with James McAvoy, for example. Or Cabin Pressure for BBC radio with I highly recommend… it’s got the Amazing Roger Allam too, those two great voices bouncing off each other is a delight! (The whole cast is great)
He doesn’t do comedy as often though.
‘Some actors are a lot’. Some guys are, too. I’m an archaeologist, & I remember working in the Pacific Islands where the field tech I was working with wanted to see how long he could go without washing his field clothes. Gross. I glanced over at his girlfriend, standing behind him, and she just rolled her eyes. And let me just paint the picture: hot, humid island practically straddling the equator, outdoor labor, no air-con at the house. Day after day.
Other people have to work with you and live with you. TAKE A SHOWER!
ETA and he looks more and more like Damian Lewis in every picture lately.
I applaud Cumberbatch for addressing the issues surrounding the male toxic masculinity being an issue still today. We do need to raise our sons to be cognizant of their emotions and tenderness, but it’s imperative that our sons learn by example. The fathers out there need to set the exam,ple, it’s not the responsibility solely for the mothers. Otherwise it allows that the toxicity to perpetuate, it will continue to do so for generations.
Good for him to keep his private life private. It’s no ones business but his. Did I detect a slight dig at the UK for their handling of the coronavirus? Hmmmm….
Considering that the real Method Actor thing would be to not wash at all for the entire shoot, that he showered every six days tells me that he was balancing actorly needs with those of the people around him.
True. I read that his character is shown bathing in a mud hole and to show contrast his brother Jesse Phlemens bathes inside. But he can bathe everyday and just roll in mud each morning for his character right ? I guess he just wanted to be In that crusty state of mind
And apparently it was the director, Jane Campion, who suggested he go more Method for this than he usually does.
Not sure if that involved the decision about bathing though LOL!
Pfft. Try living without electricity and safe running water for a week plus. The residents of Southeast Louisiana after Hurricane Ida can tell you how and they aren’t prepping for a role.
I’m still mad he got to be cast as Dr Strange. Heigh ho.
Not bathing for six days, eh? When he could do so? SMH.
I thought his answer re: Scarlett’s lawsuit was pretty diplomatic to both sides.
I’m sure he is great in the and agree that he is really good in those roles that allow him to show a darker side. I’m glad he is having the opportunity to do a movie like this with Jane Campion and glad he and his family are safe and well. Looking forward to the day I can go see him at the theater.
I can’t whistle, either. I used to be able to, but ever since I got braces on my teeth in the 8th grade & then off in the 10th, I haven’t been able to.
I have never been able to whistle and it’s not for lack of trying!
I was a trained actor in a past life (theatre school, film, performance art and the like) and I think the method and other performance techniques are overdone, misinterpreted or used as an ego trip and manipulated by abusive people for sure but also when you are prepping for a difficult role and are really getting into your work sometimes there is no replacement for inhabiting some of those physical stressors or undesirable traits to push your performance over the top. It’s similar in some ways to what athletes will do (very similar if you are a dancer) for a special event. When you are doing something like forgoing hygiene there is a way to do it respectfully and most of the time all the actors and technicians work together to accommodate process. I would hope that Bendy had conversations with his colleagues about his choices and I’m sure most of them understand the need for it having been through similar experiences in their careers. I think audiences forget sometimes that acting, performance and it’s creation isn’t all about them. The final result of the art is for the viewer but the process is for the artist. Not everyone using the method is a di*khead doing weird crap and annoying their castmates is what I’m saying.
I went to see an NT Live performance of him and Jonny Lee Miller in Frankenstein (where they switched playing Doctor and monster each night) and they had this making of doc before it. In it, BC tells how he had this long process and how he went to somewhere (a hospital maybe?) to study, like, severe burn victims to get a better grasp of the role of the monster. JLM said he watched his toddler aged son play and hulk around. Like, maybe Method works for some people but I’ve never really been able to take BC seriously after that.
That’s not necessarily the method, that’s just research. Different actors, research differently. Some start from a more text based or cerebral place, some are more into the physicality. I’m not sure why you aren’t taking him seriously for him taking his job seriously.
I’ll probably watch the film, but omg he’s too much. Sorry. But he’s just too much. He has mellowed out, but you can tell he’s still the thirsty boy from his embarrassing Academy Awards campaign.
Also, that whole toxic masculinity thing is just lipservice and I wish actors would stop doing that unless they actually want to put the money where the mouth is. They’re actors, not activists or sociologists or philosophers. Interviewers should ask questions accordingly.