News about Benedict Cumberbatch via Yahoo.co.uk:
Daniel Wood wrote the following for Yahoo UK & Ireland as a contributor for that site.
I’m fairly obsessed with The Hobbit’s Benedict Cumberbatch, I have been since I first saw him take on the role of Sherlock Holmes in BBC’s ‘Sherlock’. This is why it’s great to hear that Benedict will be awarded for his talent at the upcoming Britannia awards.
Benedict whose credits include ‘The Fifth Estate’, ‘Star Trek: Into Darkness’ and ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’, as well as obviously ‘Sherlock’ and the upcoming ‘Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug’, where he’ll be playing the titular dragon antagonist Smaug, will be receiving the award for British Artist of the Year at the Britannia Awards in Beverley Hills. Continue reading “Benedict Cumberbatch to be honoured with Britannia award”
As staffer Ostadan reminds us, viewers in the U.S. will have a chance to catch the second season of “Sherlock” starting Sunday on PBS. The series stars Martin Freeman, soon to be fantastically famous as Bilbo Baggins and Benedict Cumberbatch as the titular character in the series. This page will get you started on when and where you can catch it in your area. The series, generally loved by critics and audiences, is smart and funny and dramatic and is an interesting preview of the actors who will become Smaug and Bilbo and have conversations in treasure rooms. Martin was committed to the series and Peter Jackson and Warner Bros. worked the shooting schedule of the two movies based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit,” to accommodate the actor’s availability. The first film, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” is scheduled to hit theaters worldwide December 14, 2012.
Just down the board from this post is a report originating from a New Zealand television station about Benedict Cumberbatch joining ‘The Hobbit’ cast. The non-by-lined article (from the TV station, not the one here) suggests from “early reports” that Cuberbatch might be in line to voice the dragon Smaug. We don’t know if “early reports” means the writer asked somebody at a desk nearby who was left to be cast, but this seems, at best, suspicious. That isn’t to say that the reporter doesn’t have some good information, but if they do they sure don’t sound confident about it. It wasn’t even written with the journalism phrase “unnamed sources” or “a source close to the production” but rather went with something that seems to actually mean, “I might be making this up and using the name Smaug will get a lot of attention.” The author, besides not having a name, cites no source and doesn’t link to any of the “early reports” referenced.
A far more likely choice and a character that Cumberbatch looks something like: Bard the Bowman. He possesses a bit of menace and is taller and robust, much that a way the leader of men might be. He might be believable as an excellent archer as well. The actor has had a good year, playing with Martin Freeman (Bilbo Baggins) in the BBC’s “Sherlock,” and also landing a spot in Steven Spielberg’s “War Horse,” a World War I drama. So, he might make an excellent Bard but, this is also speculation so until we hear from director Peter Jackson on Facebook or hear from WB in an official press release, don’t believe everything you read on the internet. Meanwhile, be sure to check out our page of “Hobbit” characters right here.
