Benedict Cumberbatch criticises “grossly wasteful” film industry

Benedict Cumberbatch has described the film industry as “grossly wasteful” in its excessive use of resources and energy.

The Doctor Strange star was speaking to the Ruthie’s Table 4 podcast last week when he was asked about the process of bulking up to play the Marvel superhero.

“It’s horrific eating beyond your appetite,” he said, revealing that preparing for the role would require him to eat five meals a day, in addition to multiple other snacks, including boiled eggs and cheese.

“Going back to responsibility and resourcefulness and sustainability, it’s just like, ‘What am I doing? I could feed a family with the amount I’m eating,’” he added.

“It’s a grossly wasteful industry. Think about set builds that aren’t recycled, think about transport, think about food, think about housing, but also light and energy. The amount of wattage you need to create daylight and consistent light in a studio environment. It’s a lot of energy.”

Putting forward one suggestion to make film sets more ecologically acceptable, he added: “You don’t have to give the crew plastic bottles. If you’re in the middle of a desert and you can’t get glass bottles there, fair enough. But we’re in the 21st century.”

Elsewhere, Cumberbatch was one of hundreds of people to sign an open letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer earlier this year urging him to “end UK complicity” in the ongoing destruction in Gaza.

Led by refugee charity Choose Love, the letter called for all UK arms sales to Israel to be immediately suspended, immediate humanitarian access for experienced aid agencies to be provided, and that the government commit to seeking a ceasefire for “the children of Gaza”.

Cumberbatch most recently appeared in Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme. In a four-star review, NME wrote: “As ever, Anderson really cranks up the knowing whimsy. We see Korda grappling with his conscience in dream sequences where God is played by Bill Murray – who else? But The Phoenician Scheme never becomes smug or too self-referential; it’s simply a lot of fun peppered with unexpected bursts of action, a new addition to the Anderson arsenal.”

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