Benedict Cumberbatch on Auditioning for Sherlock

I heard about it and thought Oh uh that sounds like an excuse to you know reinfrank something to make money it could be a bit cheap and cheesy and then I found out who was involved I thought it's definitely not going to be cheap and cheesy these guys are very good writers I knew Stephen my mom had done um coupling um a few episodes of that Sarah Alexander's mom and Mark gatus was a huge hero of mine as a student with League of gentlemen and I so I knew the stable was good and knew their involvement in who and I knew what they'd done with that and I thought well I got to read it and I read it and I completely fell in love with it and then I went to meet them in uh in a in a flat in Holland Park um Sue virtue's mother barel virtue um once Sue virtue was called barel vtt's daughter but now I think it's the other way around she's so extra but they're both extraordin barl is's a massive Titan of the industry I'm sure she's done many of these conversations um she's she is a legend a legend and I didn't but I I don't think I'd ever met her before so she she came and it was it was her flat I wasn't aware of it I knew I was meeting Sue Mark and Steven and to read for it and uh I think one of the scenes I did was definitely the one of the first episode where I get Jon to come back to the flat and I've got I just want him to type a text for me and I'm sort of uh reposed with the steepled hands and and he's just disgusted that I've said it's urgent it's important can you make it and uh he just comes over and basically is a secretary for me um with in the study studying pink and uh and so I was doing the scene as and oh no just before I remember barl coming in she had tea and biscuits and I sort of turned to Sue and I went is that is that Mrs Hanson and she went no that's my mother okay it's not a good start not a good start at all okay forget that happened forget that happened start again cancel and continue and uh I did I I and I I made them laugh a bit and it seemed to go well and you know I knew Mark was well as an actor we were in start of a 10 together and we really got on so it was fun it was a lot of fun and I thought God this could be great I I would really enjoy doing this just as I was getting on my scooter I got a call from agent saying they're really really really really really really Keen for to do this and I put my helmet on well finish the conversation first otherwise that would have been painful um and uh I said uh Christ this could be really exposing and in a good way but I thought this is really this is a very iconic character and whether it's good bad or indifferent there's going to be a lot of focus on it as there always is with any incarnation of the great great Consulting Detectives so I took a bit of a deep breath and I thought do I want to do this is this the moment to do that cuz I kind of you know there have been other things hovering around that I might have pursued or might have done and I just went no no I I I kind of want to carry on doing the work I'm doing which is there it's getting recognition but it's you know it's just it's leading to the next job to the next job and I was fine with that I thought this is a really big sort of Step into the Limelight and then I thought it's really good material I going to have fun doing it we did the pilot it was great the PBC loved it said one and a half hours and then that was it

Channel: The Standard Hotels

Views: 521,897

Keywords: Standard Hotel, Standard Culture, BAFTA New York, Benedict Cumberbatch, High Line Room, Standard Talks, Cumberbitches

Id: 0JN62xnM2LY

Length: 3min 3sec (183 seconds)

Published: Thu Feb 20 2014