Benedict Cumberbatch on keeping politics out of his acting for Brexit: The Uncivil War
- The British actor focuses on character, not controversy, in new telemovie on how the pro-Brexit “Vote Leave” campaign won hearts and minds
- Star of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Strange supported the “Remain” side at the time
British actor Benedict Cumberbatch had to cross political lines to take up his latest role in the Channel 4 telemovie production Brexit: The Uncivil War.
The Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Strange actor portrays Dominic Cummings, the political strategist at the nexus of the pro-Brexit “Vote Leave” campaign who helped to deliver his side’s win during the 2016 referendum on Britain’s place in the European Union.
Though Cumberbatch had signalled his own support for the “Remain” side at the time, the actor says he kept politics out of the film.
“It’s not going to enhance anyone’s viewing experience of this drama if I or anyone else is talking about what their personal feelings are about it,” he says.
Brexit: The Uncivil War will be available on BBC First (via Now TV in Hong Kong) from January 8.
Written by political screenwriter James Graham, the film hits the small screen just a week before British Parliament votes on how that split will roll out when Britain makes its official exit from the European Union on March 29.