Benedict Cumberbatch has opened up about a terrifying experience from his past, recalling a harrowing kidnapping that occurred while he was filming the BBC miniseries To the Ends of the Earth in South Africa in 2004. In a recent interview with Variety, the 48-year-old actor shared details of the incident, which has left a lasting impact on his life.
“I was scared, really scared. I said: ‘What are you going to do with us? Are you going to kill us?’ I was really worried that I was going to get raped or molested or just tortured or toyed with in some way, some act of control and savagery.” Benedict Cumberbatch told The Hollywood Reporter in 2013.
Benedict Cumberbatch Kidnapped in 2004
Benedict Cumberbatch and his friends were returning from a diving trip when their vehicle suffered a tyre blowout. Stranded on the roadside, they were approached by six armed men who abducted them at gunpoint. The group was held captive for several hours, during which they were robbed and driven around before being abandoned, tied up but ultimately unharmed.
When he opened up about the incident to The Hollywood Reporter back in 2013, the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art graduate said the trio were like “sitting ducks” after their car tyre blew, and he genuinely feared for his life as they were frisked for money, drugs and weapons.
Kidnapping Changed Benedict Cumberbacth
Reflecting on this traumatic event, Doctor Strange actor Benedict Cumberbatch described how it “turbo-fuelled” his desire to live a more adventurous life. He admitted that the near-death experience instilled in him an acute awareness of existence, prompting him to engage in high-risk activities like skydiving. “I could die at any moment,” he recalled, highlighting how the incident reshaped his perspective on life.
The incident fundamentally changed him and “gave me a sense of time, but not necessarily a good one”, Benedict Cumberbatch recalled in the interview with Variety.
“It made me go, ‘Oh, right, yeah, I could die at any moment’,” he said. “I was throwing myself out of planes, taking all sorts of risks. But apart from my parents, I didn’t have any real dependents at that point.”
The BBC Sherlock also noted how becoming a father has further deepened his understanding of time and priorities. Now married with three sons, Cumberbatch expressed that the responsibilities of parenthood have made him more reflective about his choices and experiences.
Benedict, who took part in Running Wild With Bear Grylls: The Challenge in 2023, married his long-term partner, theatre director Sophie Hunter, in 2015 and they now share three children – Christopher, nine, Hal, seven, and six-year-old Finn.
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