Benedict Cumberbatch interview: Why ‘How to Live on Earth’ left him ‘turbocharged’

‘The Earth is a spaceship and our bodies are spacesuits,’ says Benedict Cumberbatch. The actor discusses presenting ‘How to Live on Earth’, finding hope in environmental storytelling, and why humanity must remember that it is a part of Nature, not apart from it

Updated - September 24, 2026 11:07 am IST

Benedict Cumberbatch filming in the Natural History Museum, London, for ‘How to Live on Earth’ | Photo Credit: Open Planet Studios

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.”

It was when he read the script that Benedict felt “slightly trepidatious because there is really only one presenter of natural history documentaries, Sir David Attenborough. I was keen not to tread on those heels or be lost in trying to be that person.”

How to Live on Earth is a very different flavour and character, the Dr Strange actor says. “It drew me in with its humour, and also the revelations of the three-pillared approach that subtitled the film, which is ‘How to Feed the Future’, ‘How to Value Nature’ and ‘How to be Human’.”

Executive producer Jonnie Hughes says Benedict was the right choice because they wanted to take a different tone with the story. “It needed to reach into people’s hearts and minds. Benedict’s back catalogue is perfect in terms of global reach. He has the air of a storyteller with an intellectual argument.”

The documentary’s use of experts include wildlife filmmaker and explorer, Dan O’Neill, climate justice activist, Xiye Bastida, and former White House chef and senior policy advisor on nutrition, Sam Kass, who helped Benedict present with authority.

Dan O’Neill filming in Calakmul Biosphere Reserve - Mexico - for ‘How to Live on Earth’ | Photo Credit: Open Planet Studios

“They are extraordinary and I felt bolstered for the part that I play. That’s what I like to do in my advocacy. I’m not a policy expert, a scientist or a biologist. I’m not part of an indigenous people with ancestralism. These are experts that I am in awe of, who have lived the talk, who have walked the talk. It’s key to me that I feel what I’m saying is backed up by those in the know.”

From mathematician Alan Turing to the coarse rancher in The Power of the Dog, Benedict has inhabited complex characters. Stepping into the role of guide was a different skin to occupy, the Academy Award-nominated actor says “It’s a variation of myself. I have a natural curiosity about the world and how we ought to be living on it. I’m invested in the idea of doing better, both personally, and as a society.”

The makers and Benedict refined both the voiceover and the piece to camera. “It wasn’t too off the beaten track for my personality. There was a quirk to it, yes, but it wasn’t a forced humour or an over-earnest tub thumping tone.”

Not wanting it to look like a performance, Benedict wished for the narration to be grounded. “There’s a presentational aspect to it. You have to hear and understand what I’m saying, the phrasing has to be weighted in the correct way, and you have to want to look at my face every now and again because I’m in it (smiles). But apart from that, it’s got to come from an authentic place.”

Xiye Bastida filming in Time Square - New York City - for ‘How to Live on Earth’ | Photo Credit: Open Planet Studios

Making the film changed Benedict’s relationship with the natural world. “It turbocharged my understanding of it. For example, I know that interacting with Nature is good for mental health and for Nature, and seeing the prisoners interact with the turtles underlined it. I know that if you allow Nature to thrive, it comes back online with its own solutions.”

Seeing the emotion of the tribespeople on the removal of the dams on the Klamath River in southern Oregon and northern California and the return of the salmon was particularly moving, Benedict says. “Every time I’ve watched that sequence, I’ve cried. The emotion is so transparent and potent, that it reaffirms my hope and belief that we do have enough humanity amongst us to make a difference.”