I did say [to Jonny], 'Well, I’d prefer you didn’t do it but you’ve got a kid to feed, a nice house in LA and a wife to keep in good clothes.' When you get used to a certain standard of living and they waft a paycheck at you, what are you going to do?
Cumberbatch reached out to THR to clarify his remarks, saying that he was misquoted. Here's his full statement:
I am both bemused and upset at this misquote. I never said that Johnny took the job for the paycheck nor did I ask him not to do it. What I said is I would have preferred not to be in the situation where we will again be compared because we are friends. I know for a fact his motivations were to do with the quality of the script and the challenges of this exceptional role.
It is baffling because I have only been supportive of an incredibly talented actor who I am proud to call a friend taking a job I know he is going to enjoy immensely and be wonderful in.
Over 70 actors have played this exceptional character before us. To say that there can be only one Holmes would be ludicrous. We're both thrilled to get the opportunity to play him in a modern context. The world of Sherlock Holmes and the world that we live in now is big enough to take more than one interpretation. As a genuine Sherlock Holmes fan I am greatly looking forward to his series.
I love Benedict Cumberbatch but he seems to have been 'misquoted' an awful lot recently. I'm suprised that comments that he clearly makes in jest are taken so seriously.
ReplyDeleteThat would have been an incredibly unpolite quote if he had said it. Misquoted or not, it is an unfortunate statement. Even though I think this new Sherlock is a bad idea, that was anything but considerate, especially if they are friends. Let's hope he was actually misquoted and isn't that rude.
ReplyDeleteIt's highly likely that he said it in jest, it's pretty typical British humour, said with a sly grin and his mate would have laughed. The press probably just loved putting it forward as a serious comment!
ReplyDeleteSurprised that the press with manipulate anything they can to create a bit of drama? I'm not, sadly. :(
ReplyDeleteEven in this case, he's been in this business for a while now and should know that entertainment journalists tend to maneuver whatever actors say. I bet he'll be more careful next time.
ReplyDeleteI guess not, I just thought, given the nature of the interview, that it wouldn't have been twisted in that manner.
ReplyDeleteYes, sadly. I kinda hope he doesn't learn - the press will slowly suck the fun out of interviews if actors get to cautious they won't even make jokes. Actors would have to be so paranoid it'd almost impossible to answer questions, i suspect they just have to go for it and then argue against misquotes afterwards, as above.
ReplyDeleteYes awful isn't it, i am not a fan of the press at all.
ReplyDeleteAs they say,shit happens.I'm sure they spoke one way or another....
ReplyDeleteI'm a big fan of both Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu (not so much Aidan Quinn) so I will definitely be giving the show a chance.... from the preview of Elementary and having watched Sherlock they are rather different interpretations and I can certainly see myself watching both.
ReplyDeleteOf course, I see the misquoted quote in yourfaveisproblemetic...
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