The Grinch & # 39; s Benedict Cumberbatch on his party pet

Benedict Cumberbatch is naughty, green and ready to roar happily during the holidays The grinch.

The 42-year-old English actor played crazy wits, from Doctor Strange of Marvel to Sherlock Holmes. But Cumberbatch knew he was intensifying the game by revisiting Grinch, Theodor Seuss Geisel's children's book (aka Dr. Seuss) and Chuck Jones' 1966 special show How the Grinch stole Christmas!

"It's the joy: whether by proxy or not, you feel a thrill of his wickedness," said Cumberbatch, speaking on the phone from New York. But there is also Grinch love in the new version. We talked to a Cumberbatch, with a surprising joy, putting on Christmas sweaters, driving like a Grinch and what drives him crazy during the holidays.

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Sensitive actors would hate this call by saying, "You are the perfect Grinch!" How did it go?

I have my moments. But, I thought, "Christ, it's a bit early to have been called Grinch, is not it?" One of my first serious questions was: why me? They said, "We love your voice". So I gave them a Grinch voice, rather animal with an American dialect. They said, "No, we would like your voice". Then I got it. They found a correlation between Benedict Cumberbatch as Grinch. They saw Sherlock and strangers, a bit socially awkward, who can be rude at times. I said, "I may not be the good guy." I had to stick to my guns: "You can not release a movie with an English Grinch, it has to be an American."

Is your argument undermined by the fact that the English actor Boris Karloff expressed the Grinch in the original special show with a British accent?

What is it? I did not see the original. I loved the book, but I did not see any of the other versions (special TV show or Jim Carrey's 2000 film). I'm looking forward to seeing both now that I'm free to influence what I'm doing. But there is something classically American in the rhyme scheme that lends itself much more to an American accent.

Do people understand that Grinch's philosophy is laudable in some areas, such as his stance against Christmas commercialism?

He proved that he was right and wrong. But when we start stealing toys from children, things are not going so well. It's a tough sell at Christmas.

Does the Grinch offer the freedom to be grumpy during the holidays?

There are some things that will crush you. I've been working in a shop during the Christmas season, with the rehearsal of the holiday track. It drives you crazy. And your Christmas spirit is really, really put to the test. I'm not as high at Christmas as the Whoville Whos. But I'm not as grumpy about it as the Grinch. I am somewhere in a merry, cynical and mean English.

What aspect of vacation brings out your Grinch?

The plastic definitely takes me to Christmas with the amount of waste and joy in the short term. Beyond that, I'm human driving. Everyone can get lost in his world and have the impression of driving on Mount Crumpit and the world is at fault. I can have Grinchy in a car. I am quite grumpy when I'm hungry or jet lagged. It happens. But honestly, I do not have much to say to Grinchy. And I love Christmas for the reasons that this movie celebrates.

Have you ever pulled the Grinch card, got grumpy during the recording and did you say it was for character reasons?

I prepared for this by making it very grumpy to do another recording session, saying the same line 500 times. It's enough to put you in Grinch's mind. But it was always a joy to enter the Soho recording studio. There would be a healthy breakfast shot of something green with a little ginger. I would have one on which I could put the green light, go down the stairs with a smile and crack.

Christmas is a good time for the bad guys. Who are your favorites?

Hans Gruber at Die hard. It's a Christmas movie in my book.

Christmas controversy! Other?

Bill Murray in flayed. A wonderful anti-hero rather than a villain. It's the one I can watch whenever it's turned on with one of my favorite fence numbers, Put a little love in your heart. Great song.

Do you want to play Scrooge?

I have been offered in the past. I should not talk about offers. May be. It's a story that has been told a lot. Superlatively.

Have you ever worn a Christmas sweater?

Never. Not knowingly anyway. Not once, I could dress and control my wardrobe.

So you're anti-sweater Christmas?

I am not anti-sweater Christmas. I would simply prefer other people to walk around as a good target.

Which mantra allows you to spend the holidays?

Only (fill in the number) days to go. No, to be honest, I've worked so hard over the last few holiday seasons that all I'm looking at is gold at the end of the rainbow: family and friends behind a closed door without further request. This is the only Christmas present I can wish for these days.

The grinch (G) opens in New Zealand cinemas on December 7th.

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