--- description: The serious actor is guaranteed not to distract from a wild "Doctor Strange" plot title: Why Benedict Cumberbatch is the Perfect Marvel Star image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfdf4e5f2a360bf9e/698762e98e060144fb457ed4/ap22723301265.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Why Benedict Cumberbatch Should Play Doctor Strange  by [Daniel D'Addario](/author/daniel-daddario/)  ## Daniel D'Addario Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 27, 2014 8:29 PM CUT  Graham Norton Show - London. Benedict Cumberbatch during filming of the Graham Norton Show at the London Studios, London, to be aired on BBC One on Friday evening. Picture date: Thursday October 23, 2014\. Photo credit should read: Yui Mok/PA Wire URN:21270396 Graham Norton Show - London. Benedict Cumberbatch during filming of the Graham Norton Show at the London Studios, London, to be aired on BBC One on Friday evening. Picture date: Thursday October 23, 2014\. Photo credit should read: Yui Mok/PA Wire URN:21270396Yui Mok—PA Wire/Press Association Images  by [Daniel D'Addario](/author/daniel-daddario/)  ## Daniel D'Addario Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 27, 2014 8:29 PM CUT Benedict Cumberbatch is reportedly [in negotiations](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/benedict-cumberbatch-star-doctor-strange-742079 "undefined") to star in Marvel’s _Doctor Strange_ adaptation, one of many planned superhero movies within the universe of _The Avengers_. The British actor and world-famous photobombardier has no shortage of accolades these days—he won an Emmy for _Sherlock_ this year and is already rumored to be a frontrunner in the Oscar race for his performance as Alan Turing in _The Imitation Game._ But this role, should the rumors prove true, would be a chance for the charismatic rising star, charming in just about every interview he gives, to finally become a household name. In the comics, Doctor Strange is a powerful magician entrusted with protecting planet Earth from supernatural, extra-planetary forces. “Although he moved fearlessly between realities like a prototype psychonaut, his mission as Sorcerer Supreme was ultimately about keeping the doors of perception closed,” writes [Grantland’s Alex Pappademas](http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/career-arc-doctor-strange-marvels-uncastable-sorcerer-supreme/ "undefined"). Marvel clearly wants an actor with gravitas. If reports are to be believed, the list of considerations for the role include the likes of [Joaquin Phoenix](http://deadline.com/2014/10/benedict-cumberbatch-doctor-strange-movie-cast-862815/ "undefined")–on a winning streak after _Her,_ _The Master_, and the upcoming Pynchon adaptation _Inherent Vice—_along with _Dallas Buyers Club_ Oscar-winner Jared Leto. But while his competition is talented, Cumberbatch may be the wisest choice of his generation’s heavyweight actors. First, there’s Cumberbatch’s physical appearance, which lends well to a surreal cinematic universe. If _Doctor Strange_ is to be significantly more surreal than other superhero movies, it needs a more, to put it bluntly, freaky-looking star. Unlike Phoenix, Leto, or other stars around the same age, Cumberbatch has narrow, wide-set eyes and vertiginous cheekbones. To look at him is to be transported into a universe slightly removed from our own. It’s an aesthetic that worked in his favor as Khan in _Star Trek Into Darkness_. Cumberbatch is famous, of course, but far less a celebrity-at-large than any of the other actors rumored to be in contention for the role, so he will enter the Marvel Universe, like Chris Hemsworth did, with less pre-existing baggage. (Before he picked up Thor’s hammer, Hemsworth was best known as the star of an Australian soap opera.) Cumberbatch’s vocal fan base will easily help make this movie a hit, but, really, it’s his relative unfamiliarity that makes this a good call. He’s an actor who can fill a screen without becoming bigger than the film itself. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3541900/benedict-cumberbatch-doctor-strange/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3541900/benedict-cumberbatch-doctor-strange/"},"headline":"Why Benedict Cumberbatch Should Play Doctor Strange","datePublished":"2014-10-27T20:29:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:02:11.709Z","description":"Marvel's rumored to be negotiating with the Sherlock star. 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