Benedict Cumberbatch makes his Marvel superhero debut as Doctor Strange

HE quit Judo after five lessons as a child, but Benedict Cumberbatch is training hard to reign as Sorcerer Supreme in Marvel’s Doctor Strange.

“CUT, let’s go again … cut, let’s try that again … let’s go again please … let’s take a break.”

As he stands in the centre of a mock-ancient, paved courtyard on his 15th take of a 30-move martial arts sequence, Benedict Cumberbatch may well have thought back to when he was an eight-year-old boy.

Back then he was in a school hall — not a real-life, former-military, tank-training field in South East England, which has now been converted into a film set supposedly of an ancient, mystical Tibetan temple.

Back when he was eight, Cumberbatch could only manage five lessons of judo before he realised it was not for him. Now the consummate, actor is trying over and over to perfect a complex sequence for the critical scene. Seeing something awry in his form, he pulls himself up and wants to reshoot the sequence to make sure he gets it just right for his Marvel superhero debut as the “Sorcerer Supreme”, Doctor Strange, in the coming blockbuster of the same name.

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Doctor Stephen Strange in the new Marvel blockbuster. Picture: Jay Maidment/Marvel

“It’s a physical jam this role, definitely, but it’s kind of fun,” the 40-year-old British actor says in a break from filming the sequence.

Superhero fans the world over were sent into a lather last year when it was confirmed Cumberbatch was cast in the lead for Doctor Strange. It’s Marvel’s latest addition to its eight-year winning streak of bringing comic book characters alive on the big screen and during which time they have produced more than 20 blockbuster films within the so-called “Marvel Cinematic Universe”.

In that collection, kicked off by Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, there have been Nordic gods (Thor), a bug-sized reformed thief (Ant-Man) and even a talking raccoon and animate tree (Guardians Of the Galaxy).

Now Cumberbatch takes the title role as a modern day neurosurgeon, Stephen Strange, who learns ancient super powers alongside an androgynous Tilda Swinton (playing a 700-year-old mystic called the Ancient One) and Chiwetel Ejiofor, as a good guy-bad guy former pupil of the mystic.

Tilda Swinton is cast as The Ancient One (left) and Mordo is Chiwetel Ejiofor. Picture: Jay Maidment/Marvel

And the result is a spectacular fusion of quality acting — all three have either won or been nominated for Oscars — with martial arts stunts and green screen special effects, which are sure to combine to see the lesser known superhero character gain a new cult following.

With its mind-bending visuals (think Inception on steroids) and otherworldly subject matter Doctor Strange has been described as Marvel’s trippiest film yet — and may also be its riskiest.

Then again, few had heard of Iron Man before Downey Jr hit the jackpot in 2008 and he’s now featured in three stand-alone movies, two Avengers (with two more to come) and a leading role in this year’s Captain America: Civil War. Even the totally obscure Marvel superheroes have become box office gold — Guardians Of the Galaxy made an astonishing $900 million when it was released in 2014.

Doctor Strange tells the story of the world’s top surgeon Stephen Strange who is injured in a car accident and loses the use of his hands. Bereft and with his monstrous ego shattered, he sets about looking for meaning and healing and comes across an androgynous Swinton, whose gender remains unknown throughout the film (“It’s all in the eye of the beholder really, up for debate,” Swinton says), to learn ancient martial arts and mystical powers.

Such is his superior acting, it’s not clear whether the multiple takes are because his character has to learn properly or the actor can’t quite get it right.

A bit of both, Cumberbatch says with a laugh.

Marvel’s latest addition to its eight-year winning streak of bringing comic book characters alive on the big screen. Picture: Jay Maidment/Marvel

“There is a certain room for me improving as well as the character improving so a learning process both purposefully and accidentally because I’m not from a martial arts background,” he says. “I may have done judo when I was eight but only for five sessions.

“It was one of those things I picked up and tried and I remember my brain rattling and thinking ‘this really hurts you know’, there are mats and you have to learn to fall properly but it hurt. Weirdly, I played a lot of contact sport but not martial arts and when it was a competitive thing fighting one other person I was a little bit squeamish — but fascinated by the discipline of it and how it’s achieved in movies as well.”

Cumberbatch, who travelled to Tibet and to North India to prepare for the role, says he didn’t know anything about the comic book hero until he was approached by directors and producers and started going through the material.

He also says he had a clash in schedules and initially didn’t think he could do the film but both he and the studio adjusted to ensure he could play the lead character.

Doctor Strange has been described as Marvel’s trippiest film yet — and may also be its riskiest. Picture: Jay Maidment/Marvel

“Once I had had a couple of conversations (with producers) it just started to open up and I thought its definitely going to be one of those moments in Marvel’s evolution, a very different feel, very different hero and different set of circumstances to what we have seen before,” he says, adding how grateful he was the studio adjusted to get him in. He also loved the physicality of the role, a departure from previous roles including The Fifth Estate and The Imitation Game, for which he was nominated for an Oscar.

He says Strange is not a nasty character but is closed off, an egotist and unable to love anything but himself until the accident. But after meeting the Ancient One and the slow-burn lessons in magic and martial arts, his character evolves metaphorically and physically.

Cumberbatch says that as a child his comic book heroes were a little more down to Earth — he cites Asterix, Obelix and Beano as early favourites — but he became interested in Batman around the time of Tim Burton’s 1989 film.

“I remember Prince’s soundtrack, we all had it, we all danced to it and then recount Jack Nicholson’s lines, he played the Joker, it was a lot of fun,” he says.

Swinton, who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Michael Collins, it best known for her dramatic roles, but a closer look at her CV reveals comedy, action and fantasy too. After admitting that her favourite superhero is actually David Bowie, she says she’s “in a candy store” to be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Doctor Strange tells the story of the world’s top surgeon Stephen Strange who is injured in a car accident and loses the use of his hands. Picture: Jay Maidment/Marvel

“I love these huge films and I’m a bit of a geek and so partly the seeing all the special effects come together is a big thrill,” she says. It’s fantasy film, it’s imagination and I’ve done the research of loving these sorts of fantasy films all my life. I’ve done the research of, not that I knew it was research, but being in Kathmandu but it’s a piece of imagination, a fairy story a huge leap, all of it.”

Cumberbatch says Doctor Strange is certainly an “origin” flick and a sequel is already in the works. No doubt the Sorcerer Supreme will also become an integral part of the MCU in coming Avengers films and other crossovers.

“I think he carries a lot of potential for the Marvel universe people, they hold him in quite high esteem in terms of the Top Trumps of where character lie in the Marvel-verse and hopefully that is how he will play out with what comes next,” he says.

Doctor Strange opens on October 27.