Benedict Cumberbatch interview: Why ‘How to Live on Earth’ left him ‘turbocharged’
Actor Benedict Cumberbatch discusses his role as presenter in the Open Planet documentary 'How to Live on Earth', which explores themes of food, nature, and humanity. He shares his initial hesitation due to following in the footsteps of Sir David Attenborough, and explains how the project's unique humour and expert-backed approach drew him in.
Why it matters
High-profile natural history documentaries continue to be a primary vehicle for public education on climate and conservation issues, utilizing star power to broaden engagement.
Benedict Cumberbatch is possibly the only person who can get away with using a word like “trepidatious” in conversation. The actor, who captured our collective imagination as Sherlock , and has gone on to comfortably inhabit the MCU , as well as smaller films, used the word when talking about presenting How to Live on Earth.
The Open Planet documentary premiered on YouTube on September 20. Speaking over a video call from London, Benedict says the question, ‘How to live on Earth?’, fascinated him. “I wanted to find out. I’d worked with Fredi (Devas, director) before on a documentary about the Antarctic, (remember penwing, penling?) which I did the voiceover for in New Zealand during the lockdown in 2020.”
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