Benedict Cumberbatch, Transition Completed

by Lynnette Porter

  Title Page

  BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH, TRANSITION COMPLETED

  Films, Fame, Fans

  Lynnette Porter

  Publisher Information

  First edition published in 2014 by

  MX Publishing

  335 Princess Park Manor, Royal Drive,

  London, N11 3GX

  www.mxpublishing.com

  Digital edition converted and distributed by

  Andrews UK Limited

  www.andrewsuk.com

  © Copyright 2014 Lynnette Porter

  The right of Lynnette Porter to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1998.

  All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without express prior written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted except with express prior written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1956 (as amended). Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damage. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this book. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and not of MX Publishing.

  Cover design by Jules Coomber.

  About the Author

  Lynnette Porter, Ph.D., is a professor in the Humanities and Communication Department at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, USA. This is her fifteenth book. Among the others are books about television series, including Sherlock, Doctor Who, and LOST, as well as films, including The Lord of the Rings. In addition, she has written numerous chapters about The Hobbit, Torchwood, Heroes, Quantum Leap, and Internet fandom, for example, as chapters within other authors’ books. She is a contributing editor, often writing about television or film, for online magazine PopMatters and an associate editor for the journal Studies in Popular Culture. She is a frequent speaker at academic conferences and fan conventions, talking about television, film, popular culture, or celebrity studies. In 2013, MX Publishing released the performance biography, Benedict Cumberbatch, In Transition. The 2014 follow-up, Benedict Cumberbatch, Transition Completed, can be read as a stand-alone book or companion work.

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you to the friendly staff of the National Theatre Archives in London, director Susan Luciani, and entrepreneur Margareta Lidskog. A very special thank you to Jules Coomber, who once again has designed a beautiful cover that captures what this book is all about.

  Introduction

  “You can’t get too nostalgic. You can look back and go, ‘That was a great year, a great moment’... I’ve got personal goals and all sorts of things that I want to evolve. I always have been about building a career of longevity”. [1]

  Benedict Cumberbatch

  Star Trek: Into Darkness, The Fifth Estate, 12 Years a Slave, August: Osage County, and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - these would be milestones in most actors’ entire career. As part of his “career of longevity,” in the months leading up to the phenomenal professional years of 2013-14, Benedict Cumberbatch accepted a wide range of roles, including smaller character parts in large ensembles (that, in 2013, ended up being nominated for or winning major film awards), a controversial lead, and blockbuster villains [one in a major sci-fi franchise, two others - one requiring motion- capture (mo-cap) - in possibly the largest fantasy franchise ever]. These films are merely a year’s additions to his already-vast resume. Roles released during 2013 and the constant attention paid to Cumberbatch because of them proved to be the final step in his transition from respected working actor to bona fide worldwide star and media celebrity, culminating in becoming the recipient of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Los Angeles’ Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year.

  A Fan Experience

  My fan experience in the U.S. may be unique because of my region and ability to drive around my home state in search of Cumberbatch performances. The sheer number of events during autumn 2013, however, made finding a Cumberbatch-related project a relatively easy task, even for someone not living anywhere close to a major entertainment hub like London, New York, or Los Angeles, and thus unable to see the actor in “live performance” filming on location, attending a convention, walking a red carpet, or even daring to venture out to a restaurant or theatre to see a friend on stage. Instead, like many Cumberbatch fans, I had to content myself with visits to the cinema.

  In October I watched The Fifth Estate twice during its opening week (and, unfortunately, found far too many open seats), but a few weeks later I stood in a long line outside a small “art” cinema to get a good seat for 12 Years a Slave. As I did before Star Trek, I bought my Hobbit ticket well in advance so I could be among the first in the U.S. to see the film, and I, along with hundreds in the sold-out cinema, cheered when Cumberbatch made his entrance - in May as Khan, in December as Smaug. Then there was the afternoon when, after finishing my teaching responsibilities for the week, I hurried to the closest cinema to catch the last matinee of August: Osage County, on the way home stopping to buy the soundtrack CD because Cumberbatch’s character sings one song while accompanying himself on the organ.

  Although it is easy to joke that Benedict Cumberbatch may have provided something for everyone during the latter months of 2013, from the intellectualised Fifth Estate to the star-powered adaptation of August: Osage County, many of these films (12 Years a Slave, The Fifth Estate, August: Osage County) are rated R (in the U.S.), which theoretically limited the audience to adults over 18. Under-18 fans primarily looked forward to The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (as well as the return of favourite consulting detective Sherlock Holmes in early 2014) because, without a guardian over 18, they could not get in to see the actor’s other movies.

  Not only were traditional movies part of my Cumberbatch cinematic experience during autumn 2013, but the National Theatre (or, at least, an NT Live recording of what had been performed in London) brought the actor onto a big screen within a few hundred miles from my home. To see Frankenstein (yet again, this time as part of a Halloween celebration) and the National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage feast of scenes (including one with Cumberbatch), I drove three to five hours each way to be part of the packed house for these cinematic broadcasts. This is not an atypical journey for fans eager to see NT Live (and much shorter than the transworld trips many fans take in order to see Cumberbatch during a live appearance).

  If my conversations with audience members before and after Frankenstein and the National Theatre’s anniversary celebration are anything to go by, these broadcasts have created new Cumberbatch fans, because not everyone who attends NT Live screenings may be film aficionados or viewers of PBS’s Sherlock. Some who adore Frankenstein, for example, found something fresh to admire in the actor’s brief scene from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.

  Even when I went to see a movie that does not include Cumberbatch in the cast, I was made aware of yet another of his projects coming soon to a screen near me. A long trailer for August: Osage County played before Philomena during the Thanksgiving holiday. Audiences first heard Little Charles’ Oklahoma accent, saw this sensitive soul cry in public, and likely wished to hug him because of his shy smile. One woman seated near me commented that she planned to see August: Osage County because she likes “that nice young man, Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays Sherlock Holmes on TV”.

  Interviews and promotional events taking place a
round the world prior to a film’s release led to larger audiences for the actor’s cinematic work. A few years ago, fewer people would go to a movie simply because Cumberbatch is in it. In the U.S., for example, his higher media profile - including interviews on talk (or chat) shows like Katie (in October, to discuss The Fifth Estate) and Jimmy Kimmel Live and Conan (in December) soon after The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’s Los Angeles premiere - almost guaranteed the actor greater face or name recognition by the end of 2013. By early 2014, Cumberbatch exclaimed in the press that he feared he had overexposed himself (which, he admitted, sounded dirty). More seriously, he told an Adelaide Advertiser reporter that “I just hope the public agree because they are seeing a lot of me”.[2]

  The performances so briefly mentioned in this Introduction illustrate that Cumberbatch is an actor who will not limit himself to “either/or” acting challenges: to leads or supporting roles, theatre or film (or television or another medium). Furthermore, he does not limit himself to roles in mainstream films or indies, as will be discussed in later chapters. His is the actor’s quest to stretch himself as a performer, sometimes quite literally, and to take on characters who might not be fashionable or easy to like but are thought provoking and illuminating. Perhaps that diversity is what Benedict Cumberbatch can uniquely offer the entertainment industry.

  A Performance Biography and Celebrity Studies

  Like its predecessor, Benedict Cumberbatch, In Transition (MX Publishing, 2013), Benedict Cumberbatch, Transition Completed: Films, Fame, Fans explores the nature of Cumberbatch’s fame and fandom while analysing his most recent and forthcoming roles. Since the “old days” in Hollywood, when actors under studio contract would often make several movies a year, few actors, even wonderfully talented ones in great demand, have had so many high-profile films released within a year. Of course, industry timing to determine when a movie will be most marketable plays a big part in selecting its release date, which may be months or years after it is filmed. That Cumberbatch has been very busy and has been cast in so many interesting films in the past few years cannot be disputed, however, even when they all seem to arrive during the same awards season.

  At the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), for example, Cumberbatch not only starred in the gala opening film, The Fifth Estate, but had roles in two other films showcased at this festival alone: 12 Years a Slave (for which Cumberbatch walked the red carpet and was interviewed before the premiere) and August: Osage County (which was screened the day after Cumberbatch had to fly back to work on another film). Such a career is unprecedented in recent film history.

  This in-depth performance biography explores Cumberbatch’s work in four media that have been staples of his career for years: radio, stage, film, and television. In the little more than a year since In Transition was published, the actor has, yet again, been busy in all these media. He planned a return to the stage as Hamlet, recorded the final episode of the BBC radio hit Cabin Pressure, and filmed The Imitation Game. He balanced a series of feature film offers, completed voice roles, and acted in, produced, and promoted indie short Little Favour. He brightened television or computer screens as himself (on, respectively, Top Gear and Sesame Street), and he starred as Sherlock Holmes in the third series of the BBC’s multiply award-winning Sherlock. Merely a “what he did” description could be enough to fill these pages, but why and how these performances affect the entertainment industry’s perception of Cumberbatch and move audiences - individually as fans and, perhaps more importantly, collectively within popular culture - is the focus of this book and what makes it different from “regular” biographies.

  This book also differs from the information found on Tumblr, for example, or provided by diligent webmasters who bring the latest Cumberbatch news to a very wide readership. Fan and official sites are wonderful for helping to promote an actor, provide information about his projects, and give supporters a way to connect with each other and share the fan experience. They are able to provide numerous videos or photographs that would be prohibitive for me (or MX Publishing) to buy for publication because of national and international copyrights; they can keep up with every sighting or newsbreak that a published book cannot. Although I consider myself a fan, what I have done with this book is to step back and analyse not the fact that Benedict Cumberbatch has become a star but to understand how his star has uniquely ascended so rapidly and what that means to all of us living in a celebrity-oriented culture. In this respect, the current book is much more in line with celebrity studies. I synthesise information and, as a professor/author, put it in a framework to illustrate why this actor has changed the face of stardom and the connection between modern celebrity and great acting talent. I also focus on the ramifications of Cumberbatch’s explosive celebrity and extremely devoted fandom, which affect the actor (and the public perception of the acting profession) to a degree that astounds the media and even those who work closely with Cumberbatch.

  During an Entertainment Weekly interview about his critically acclaimed FX television series Fargo, star Martin Freeman - who, in Sherlock, plays John Watson - discussed his own global fame in light of such television projects and his film role as Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy. No stranger to films, fame, or fans, Freeman nonetheless seemed almost horrified by the phenomenon of co-star Cumberbatch’s career. The interviewer noted Sherlock “mania” that helped propel Cumberbatch into global fame as an actor and a sex symbol, which led Freeman to comment “The trajectory of [Cumberbatch’s rise] is very extreme... It’s deserved in his case, because he’s really good”. Would Freeman enjoy that degree of stardom? “But to that extent? No thanks. I like to be a moving target. I’ve got enough madness in my life without it being there all the time”.[3]

  Benedict Cumberbatch may not have envisioned the amount of constant attention given him because of his many recent projects, but this degree of scrutiny indicates his significant role in popular culture and the fact that he represents both the best of acting and the power of celebrity.

  1 Bill Keveney. “Benedict Cumberbatch’s Very Big Year.” USA Today. 29 Jan. 2014.

  2 Katie Ellis. “Benedict Cumberbatch - From Star Trek to Sherlock to Oscar Night Sex Symbol.” Adelaide Advertiser. 4 Apr. 2014.

  3 Josh Rottenberg. “Martin Freeman Does Not Want to Be Your Friend.” Entertainment Weekly. 1 May 2014.

  Chapter 1

  2013’s British Artist of the Year

  “I’ve always had an eye on longevity; I’ve got loads more goals to achieve. It’s not like I’ve completely conquered the whole thing. That’s a lifetime’s objective, not an overnight thing”.[1]

  Benedict Cumberbatch

  By the time Cumberbatch said this in an October 2013 interview, he had already had a marvellous year, with Star Trek: Into Darkness becoming a hit that generated a great deal of new interest in the increasingly popular actor. Before the end of the year he would be seen in four more films, including his first leading role in a major studio production. To underscore Cumberbatch’s status as a rapidly rising star and one of the world’s hottest celebrities (thanks, in part, to a vibrant Internet following), the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) became the equivalent of his official society “debut” or “coming out party” within the entertainment industry. Although his fine work had been praised for many years, he had not achieved this level of public or industry awareness of him or his film roles, and the screenings, red carpets, and endless stream of interviews attested to the fact that Cumberbatch had truly “arrived”.

  Four key events in 2013 and two in early 2014 best illustrate that Cumberbatch’s career no longer is “in transition” to stardom and international celebrity: earning the “new A-list” cover of the Hollywood Reporter, becoming TIFF’s “It” man, having media name 2013 the Year of the Cumberbatch, inaugurating BAFTA’s “In Conversation” series in New York, being named by Time
as one of the most influential people in the world, and becoming BAFTA Britannia’s British Artist of the Year.

  Any one of those popular markers of success would indicate that Cumberbatch’s career has “come of age” and earned him a respected place within the film industry, not only in the U.K. or Wellywood but increasingly in Hollywood. This level of success also feeds into and is a result of fervent media interest in everything Cumberbatch is or does.

  Hollywood Reporter’s “The New A-List” Cover

  Cumberbatch well represents the new A-List, as the Hollywood Reporter’s selection of him indicates. What is interesting is the “old Hollywood”-style cover photo of serious, suited Cumberbatch, his gaze turned away from the camera and toward the future (i.e., the right-hand side of the cover). He looks like a classic, posed Hollywood actor from the studio system’s glory days, right down to the white handkerchief in his pocket and his short, dark, tamed hair. The photo portrays Cumberbatch as a highly talented actor, being recognised for his body of work to date, who is part of that new A-list but also recalls the high-class elite status of old-time Hollywood’s glamorous stars.

  More practically for today’s Hollywood and its financial interest in the marketability of celebrities and media projects, Cumberbatch is a hot commodity. Not only does he have many film projects in the works at one time, something that Hollywood respects in a moneymaker, but he has been part of lucrative science fiction and fantasy franchises, as well as had roles in award-winning dramas. He has mass appeal in blockbusters as well as acting cred in “serious” films. He is a celebrity, with the media reporting anything they can learn about him, and he is invited to the best parties in the U.K. and U.S. and royal fetes of the arts. He has an international fan following. He regularly receives television award nominations. In short, he is doing extremely well and generally manages his public persona to great advantage. He checks all the boxes as a member of the new A-list.