--- description: Breaking news and analysis from time.com. Politics, world news, photos, video, tech reviews, health, science, and entertainment news. title: Benedict Cumberbatch by Colin Firth: TIME 100 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt430079c048ee4ba3/69868b52d0b6f27881303e13/benedict-cumberbatch-time-100-feat.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Apr 23, 2014 # Benedict Cumberbatch ## 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 Colin Firth  Actor Benedict Cumberbatch photographed October 11, 2013 in the TIME Magazine photo studio in New York. Photo credit: Paola Kudacki for TIME Actor Benedict Cumberbatch photographed October 11, 2013 in the TIME Magazine photo studio in New York. Photo credit: Paola Kudacki for TIMEPaola Kudacki for TIME When I was about 25 years old, I worked with two very good actors. The encounters were brief, but I’ve remembered them both with great admiration. Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton both embodied qualities which one is fogyishly tempted to look at with nostalgia. Along with very considerable talent, they had elegance, glamor, wit, kindness and decency. I didn’t know at the time that they were married or that they had a son of about 10 who was quietly gestating all the same attributes. And now, 30 years later, the boy has been let loose. He has taken the form of Benedict Cumberbatch. His parents’ qualities are on rampant display. It’s rare to the point of outlandish to find so many variables in one actor, including features which ought to be incompatible: vulnerability, a sense of danger, a clear intellect, honesty, courage — and a rather alarming energy. I take no pleasure in feeling humbled, but there’s no getting around it. He must be stopped. _Firth won an Academy Award for his portrayal of King George VI in_ The King’s Speech ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/2014-time-100/70781/benedict-cumberbatch-2014-time-100/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/2014-time-100/70781/benedict-cumberbatch-2014-time-100/"},"headline":"Benedict Cumberbatch","datePublished":"2014-04-23T21:54:43.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T22:59:05.330Z","description":"The alarmingly talented English star","url":"https://time.com/collections/2014-time-100/70781/benedict-cumberbatch-2014-time-100/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt430079c048ee4ba3/69868b52d0b6f27881303e13/benedict-cumberbatch-time-100-feat.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt430079c048ee4ba3/69868b52d0b6f27881303e13/benedict-cumberbatch-time-100-feat.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/2014-time-100/70781/benedict-cumberbatch-2014-time-100/","name":"Benedict Cumberbatch"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Behind the Scenes of Benedict Cumberbatch's TIME Cover Shoot","description":"A behind-the-scenes look at Benedict Cumberbatch being photographed by Paola Kudacki for the cover of TIME","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/kGXjOzYw/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2013-10-16T18:37:49.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/kGXjOzYw.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/collections/2014-time-100/70781/benedict-cumberbatch-2014-time-100/","duration":"PT59S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/collections/2014-time-100/70781/benedict-cumberbatch-2014-time-100/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```