Benedict Cumberbatch has ‘had to apologise a lot’ for role he really regrets

Benedict Cumberbatch has revealed that a certain role is ‘difficult to talk about’ and he regrets it now. Benedict, 48, has appeared in several iconic films and series including Sherlock, The Imitation Game, and The Power of the Dog. While the twice Oscar-nominated actor has received high critical acclaim for his performances, he has now revealed there is one role he majorly regrets. In Zoolander 2, the actor played All, a non-binary fashion model which sparked backlash from the LGBTQ+ community.

‘I’ve had to apologize for that quite a lot. It’s a difficult one to talk about,’ the actor said in an interview with Variety. ‘I love that group of people and it was the chance to sort of be part of something that the first time around was iconic and I was a huge fan of. ‘But it got complicated and it got misunderstood and I upset people. I respect that, so I probably wouldn’t do that again now.’.

In 2015 when the trailer for the film was released, a petition was released to boycott the film because of its portrayal of non-binary people. ‘Additionally, Cumberbatch’s character is clearly portrayed as an over-the-top, cartoonish mockery of androgyne/trans/non-binary individuals. This is the modern equivalent of using blackface to represent a minority.’. It was then added: ‘By hiring a cis actor to play a non-binary individual in a clearly negative way, the film endorses harmful and dangerous perceptions of the queer community at large.’.

The actor previously spoke to Penelope Cruz in Variety’s Actors on Actors interview and said: ‘there was a lot of contention around the role, understandably now.’. ‘In this era, my role would never be performed by anybody other than a trans actor,’ he said. ‘But I remember at the time not thinking of it necessarily in that regard, and it being more about two dinosaurs, two heteronormative clichés not understanding this new diverse world. But it backfired a little bit.’.

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. The film was released in 2016 and was a huge box office flop. With a budget of $50–55 million (£40.3 – £44.3 million), it made just $28.8 million in the U.S. and Canada and $27.9 million in other territories. Cineworld is going all out for the release of Wicked, and we couldn’t be more excited.

This meant it broke even with a worldwide total of $56.7 million (£45.6 million). Got a story?. If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you. Arrow MORE: Kanye West and Bianca Censori’s Grammys appearance could have cost him $20,000,000.