Benedict Cumberbatch
Biography
Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch (born July 19, 1976) is an English actor. Known for his roles on the screen and stage, he has received various accolades throughout his career, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a British Academy Television Award, and a Laurence Olivier Award. Cumberbatch won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Play for Frankenstein and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for Sherlock. His performances in the dramas The Imitation Game (2014) and The Power of the Dog (2021) earned him nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe Award, all for Best Actor in a Leading Role. For playing the title role in five-part drama miniseries Patrick Melrose, he won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. In 2014 Time magazine included him in its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, and in 2015 he was appointed a CBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2015 Birthday Honours for services to the performing arts and to charity. A graduate of the Victoria University of Manchester, Cumberbatch continued his training at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, obtaining a Master of Arts in Classical Acting. He first performed at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park in Shakespearean productions and made his West End debut in Richard Eyre's revival of Hedda Gabler in 2005. Since then, he has starred in the Royal National Theatre productions After the Dance (2010) and Frankenstein (2011). In 2015, he played the title role in Hamlet at the Barbican Theatre. Cumberbatch's television work includes his performance as Stephen Hawking in the television film Hawking in 2004. He gained worldwide recognition for his performance as Sherlock Holmes in the BBC series Sherlock from 2010 to 2017. He has also headlined Tom Stoppard's adaptation of Parade's End (2012), The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses (2016), Patrick Melrose (2018), and Brexit: The Uncivil War (2019). In films, Cumberbatch has starred in Amazing Grace (2006) as William Pitt the Younger, Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) as Khan, 12 Years a Slave (2013) as William Prince Ford, The Fifth Estate (2013) as Julian Assange, and The Imitation Game (2014) as Alan Turing. He also acted in the historical dramas The Current War (2017), 1917 (2019) and The Courier (2020), and received critical acclaim for his performance in Jane Campion's Western drama The Power of the Dog (2021). From 2012 to 2014, through voice and motion capture, he played the characters of Smaug and Sauron in The Hobbit film series. Cumberbatch portrays Dr. Stephen Strange in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, beginning with Doctor Strange (2016), and also voiced the character in the animated series What If...? (2021).
Known For

The Simpsons

The Simpsons

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Late Night with Seth Meyers

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

The Daily Show

The Kelly Clarkson Show

The Graham Norton Show
All Movies (103)
- Wife & Dog2026
- Blood on Snow2026 · as The Fisherman
- Confessions II – The Film2026 · as Self
- David Attenborough's 100 Years on Planet Earth2026 · as Self
- The Thing with Feathers2025 · as Dad
- Together for Palestine2025 · as Self
- The Roses2025 · as Theo Rose
- The Phoenician Scheme2025 · as Uncle Nubar
- Placebo: This Search for Meaning2024 · as Self
- The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More2024 · as Henry Sugar / Max Engelman / Harry (archive footage)
- The Book of Clarence2024 · as Benjamin
- Mog's Christmas2023 · as Mr. Thomas (voice)
- The End We Start From2023 · as AB
- James Blunt: One Brit Wonder2023 · as Self (archive footage)
- Arctic: Our Frozen Planet2023 · as Narrator
- Poison2023 · as Harry Pope
- The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar2023 · as Henry Sugar / Make-Up Artist
- Minions & More Volume 12022 · as The Grinch (voice)
- The Tiger Who Came to Tea2022 · as Daddy (voice)
- Marvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness2022 · as Self - Doctor Stephen Strange
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness2022 · as Doctor Stephen Strange
- Behind the Scenes with Jane Campion2022 · as Self (archive footage)
- Reframing the West: Behind the Scenes of Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog2022
- Spider-Man: No Way Home2021 · as Doctor Strange
- Marvel Studios' 2021 Disney+ Day Special2021 · as Stephen Strange / Doctor Strange (voice) (archive footage)
- The Power of the Dog2021 · as Phil Burbank
- The Electrical Life of Louis Wain2021 · as Louis Wain
- Letters Live from the Archive: Union Chapel2021 · as Self
- Letters Live from the Archive: Freemasons’ Hall2021
- The Mauritanian2021 · as Lt. Stuart Couch
- Antarctica2020 · as Self - Narrator
- Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King2020 · as Self
- The Courier2020 · as Greville Wynne
- 19172019 · as Colonel MacKenzie
- Between Two Ferns: The Movie2019 · as Benedict Cumberbatch
- Avengers: Endgame2019 · as Doctor Strange
- Cindy-Lou's Yule Log2019 · as The Grinch
- The Dog Days of Winter2019 · as The Grinch (voice)
- Brexit: The Uncivil War2019 · as Dominic Cummings
- Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle2018 · as Shere Khan (voice)
- The Grinch2018 · as Grinch (voice)
- The Child in Time2018 · as Stephen Lewis
- Avengers: Infinity War2018 · as Doctor Strange
- The Current War2018 · as Thomas Edison
- Thor: Ragnarok2017 · as Doctor Strange
- Walk with Me2017 · as Narrator (voice)
- Naples '442016 · as Norman Lewis (voice)
- Doctor Strange2016 · as Dr. Stephen Strange
- Shakespeare Live! From the RSC2016 · as Self - Performer
- Zoolander 22016 · as All
- Mark Gatiss: A Study in Sherlock2016 · as Himself
- Sherlock: The Abominable Bride2016 · as Sherlock Holmes
- National Theatre Live: Hamlet2015 · as Hamlet
- Black Mass2015 · as Billy Bulger
- The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies2014 · as Smaug / Sauron (voice)
- Penguins of Madagascar2014 · as Classified (voice)
- The Imitation Game2014 · as Alan Turing
- Walking with Dinosaurs: Prehistoric Planet 3D2014 · as Narrator (Voice)
- The Penguins of Madagascar - Operation: Penguin Takeover2014 · as Agent Classified (voice)
- Cristiano Ronaldo: World at His Feet2014 · as Narrator
- 9 Kisses2014 · as Man at Costume Party
- Unlocking Sherlock2014 · as Himself / Sherlock Holmes
- How to Be Sherlock Holmes: The Many Faces of a Master Detective2014 · as Self
- August: Osage County2013 · as Little Charles Aiken
- Sherlock: Many Happy Returns2013 · as Sherlock Holmes
- The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug2013 · as Smaug / Sauron
- Jerusalem2013 · as Narrator (voice)
- Little Favour2013 · as Wallace
- National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage2013 · as Rosencrantz
- 12 Years a Slave2013 · as William Ford
- The Fifth Estate2013 · as Julian Assange
- Star Trek Into Darkness2013 · as John Harrison / Khan
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey2012 · as Necromancer
- Girlfriend in a Coma2012 · as Dante (voice)
- Frankenstein: A Modern Myth2012 · as Self / Frankenstein / The Monster
- Sherlock: Uncovered2012 · as Sherlock, Self
- The Dreams of William Golding2012 · as Reader
- War Horse2011 · as Maj. Jamie Stewart
- Wreckers2011 · as David
- Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy2011 · as Peter Guillam
- The Rattigan Enigma by Benedict Cumberbatch2011
- National Theatre Live: Frankenstein2011 · as The Creature / Victor Frankenstein
- The Whistleblower2010 · as Nick Kaufman
- Unlocking Sherlock2010 · as Himself
- Third Star2010 · as James
- Four Lions2010 · as Negotiator
- Van Gogh: Painted with Words2010 · as Vincent Van Gogh
- Burlesque Fairytales2010 · as Henry Clark
- Creation2009 · as Joseph Dalton Hooker
- The Turning Point2009 · as Guy Burgess
- The Other Boleyn Girl2008 · as William Carey
- Stuart: A Life Backwards2007 · as Alexander Masters
- Inseparable2007 · as Joe / Charlie
- Atonement2007 · as Paul Marshall
- Amazing Grace2006 · as William Pitt
- Starter for 102006 · as Patrick Watts
- The Man Who Predicted 9/112005 · as Narrator (voice)
- Hawking2004 · as Stephen Hawking
- To Kill a King2003 · as Royalist
- Fields of Gold2002 · as Jeremy
- Hills Like White Elephants2002 · as The Man
- Morning— · as Frank
- Last Flight— · as Kirk Wallace Johnson
All TV Shows (58)
- Eric2024 · as Vincent
- Super/Natural2022 · as Self - Narrator (voice)
- Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge2022 · as Self
- What If...?2021 · as Doctor Strange (voice)
- What If...?2021 · as Doctor Strange / Strange Supreme (voice)
- What If...?2021 · as Doctor Strange / Strange-Supreme (voice)
- What If...?2021 · as Strange Supreme / Demon Strange (voice)
- Marvel Studios Legends2021 · as Stephen Strange / Doctor Strange (archive footage) (uncredited)
- The Kelly Clarkson Show2019 · as Self
- Good Omens2019 · as Satan (voice)
- Patrick Melrose2018 · as Patrick Melrose
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert2015 · as Self - Guest
- Variety Studio: Actors on Actors2014 · as Self
- Late Night with Seth Meyers2014 · as Self
- The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon2014 · as Self - Guest
- WWI's Tunnels of Death: The Big Dig2012 · as Narrator (Voice)
- Stephen Hawking's Grand Design2012 · as Narrator (voice)
- Parade's End2012 · as Christopher Tietjens
- The Hollow Crown2012 · as Richard
- The Hollow Crown2012 · as Richard III
- Why did you come to Japan?2012 · as Self
- The Jonathan Ross Show2011 · as Self
- Conan2010 · as Self - Guest
- Sherlock2010 · as Sherlock Holmes
- Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking2010 · as Stephen Hawking
- Small Island2009 · as Bernard
- South Pacific2009 · as Self - Narrator (voice)
- The Last Enemy2008 · as Stephen Ezard
- The Graham Norton Show2007 · as Self
- The Graham Norton Show2007 · as Self - Guest
- The One Show2006 · as Self - Guest
- Broken News2005 · as Will Parker
- To the Ends of the Earth2005 · as Edmund Talbot
- Nathan Barley2005 · as Robin
- Agatha Christie's Marple2004 · as Luke Fitzwilliam
- Dunkirk2004 · as Lt Jimmy Langley
- Fortysomething2003 · as Rory Slippery
- Cambridge Spies2003 · as Edward Hand
- Jimmy Kimmel Live!2003 · as Self - Guest
- Tipping the Velvet2002 · as Freddy
- Top Gear2002 · as Self
- Timeshift2002 · as self
- Spooks2002 · as Jim North
- The View1997 · as Self
- Leute heute1997 · as Self
- The Daily Show1996 · as Self
- Silent Witness1996 · as Warren Reid
- GMTV1993 · as Self
- Heartbeat1992 · as Toby Fisher
- Heartbeat1992 · as Charles
- Have I Got News for You1990 · as Self - Host
- The Simpsons1989 · as Severus Snape / Prime Minister (voice)
- The Simpsons1989 · as Quilloughby (voice)
- LIVE with Kelly and Mark1988 · as Self
- Saturday Night Live1975 · as Self - Host
- Saturday Night Live1975 · as Self - Cameo (uncredited)
- The Oscars1953 · as Self
- Have I Got a Bit More News for You— · as Self - Presenter