--- title: BBC Said Benedict Cumberbatch Wasn't Sexy Enough For Sherlock Role description: British Broadcasting Corporation? More like British BLASPHEMY Corporation canonical: https://time.com/119500/beneditch-cumberbatch-not-sexy-enough/ author: Samantha Grossman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-05-27T19:57:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:38:14.009Z og:title: BBC Once Said Benedict Cumberbatch Wasn't Sexy Enough for TV og:description: Blasphemy. og:url: https://time.com/119500/beneditch-cumberbatch-not-sexy-enough/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5244ad249e900759/698690f835ba6f52a3c02261/488767671.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: "Charles James: Beyond Fashion" Costume Institute Gala - Candids og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: BBC Once Said Benedict Cumberbatch Wasn't Sexy Enough for TV twitter:description: Blasphemy. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5244ad249e900759/698690f835ba6f52a3c02261/488767671.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # BBC Once Said Benedict Cumberbatch Wasn't Sexy Enough for TV > Sponsored content. 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Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ## Video: Behind the Scenes of Benedict Cumberbatch's TIME Cover Shoot [Watch (HLS stream): Behind the Scenes of Benedict Cumberbatch's TIME Cover Shoot](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/kGXjOzYw.m3u8) (0:59)  _Published 2013-10-16. A behind-the-scenes look at Benedict Cumberbatch being photographed by Paola Kudacki for the cover of TIME_ by [Samantha Grossman](https://time.com/author/samantha-grossman/) ## Samantha Grossman May 27, 2014 7:57 PM UTC  Benedict Cumberbatch attends the "Charles James: Beyond Fashion" Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2014 in New York City. Benedict Cumberbatch attends the "Charles James: Beyond Fashion" Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2014 in New York City. Neilson Barnard—Getty Images by [Samantha Grossman](https://time.com/author/samantha-grossman/) ## Samantha Grossman May 27, 2014 7:57 PM UTC Gather ’round, [Cumberbabes](http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/10/25/sherlock-star-benedict-cumberbatch-s-polarizing-cumberbitches.html) (and Cumberbros — you guys exist, right?) Today we’d like to share a tale of utter blasphemy. When the hit show _Sherlock_ was still in its early stages, BBC execs apparently worried that Benedict Cumberbatch wasn’t “sexy enough” for the titular role. [Speaking yesterday ](http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2014-05-27/steven-moffat-the-bbc-thought-benedict-cumberbatch-and-david-tennant-werent-sexy-enough)at the Hay Festival of Literature and Arts, _Sherlock_ showrunner Steven Moffat said that when he presented his casting suggestion to BBC bigwigs, they responded, “You promised us a sexy Sherlock, not him.” They also questioned the sexiness of David Tennant, who Moffat had cast as the lead in the BBC miniseries _Casanova_. “Damn, you should have cast someone sexier,” network execs apparently said. Watch out, BBC. When the Cumberbabes get word of this, they WILL come after you, and they WILL destroy you. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/119500/beneditch-cumberbatch-not-sexy-enough/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/119500/beneditch-cumberbatch-not-sexy-enough/"},"headline":"BBC Once Said Benedict Cumberbatch Wasn't Sexy Enough for TV","datePublished":"2014-05-27T19:57:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:38:14.009Z","description":"British Broadcasting Corporation? 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