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Benedict Cumberbatch took on the iconic role of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes in the hit series,Sherlock. The series also featured Martin Freeman as Dr. John Watson. This modern adaptation of the classic detective received critical acclaim and gained worldwide popularity. It also sparked a surge in creative fan fiction on the internet, with some of them exploring rather racy themes involving Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.
It turns out that both Cumberbatch and Freeman were well aware of these fanfics. TheDoctor Strangeactor revealed that he was weirdly flattered by how fans portrayed him in their imaginative stories and artwork. The fans also came up with creative art pieces when Cumberbatch was announced as part ofThe Hobbittrilogy.
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Benedict Cumberbatch Was Weirded Out By His Depiction In Fan Fiction
With Sherlock becoming increasingly popular, bothBenedict CumberbatchandMartin Freemanbecame characters in several fan fiction pieces. While they initially remained oblivious to the internet world, Cumberbatch shared in an MTV interview that it was Freeman who introduced him to some explicit fanfics that he found on Tumblr.
Both actors chose to appreciate the creativity of such artists rather than taking offense. Cumberbatch revealed that he was flattered by the way fans portrayed his bodily proportions in the stories. However,The Courieractor did admit that some fan fiction explored rather twisted territory.The Power of the Dogactor toldMTV:
“I’m ripped, doing something I wouldn’t normally do with my body, or having done to it, involving Watson. So that’s as far as I’ll hit about that one, but it’s all there on the Web if you want to find it. I was amazed at the level of artistry; people have spent hours doing it. And there’s some really weird cross-breeding stuff that goes on.”
Interestingly, the fan fiction didn’t stop withSherlock. When the news broke that Cumberbatch would be playing the role of Smaug the Dragon inThe Hobbittrilogy, fans took to the internet to create their dragon stories. TheBlack Massactor shared with MTV:
“The news got out that I was playing Smaug in Hobbit and suddenly there were lots of dragons with purple scarves flying around so it’s crazy, it’s crazy.”
For his role inSherlock, theWar Horseactor won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Miniseries. Freeman won the Supporting Actor award in the same category.
Also Read:Benedict Cumberbatch Watched His Doctor Stranger 2 Co-star Cry on Her MCU Debut in a Wholesome Moment
Martin Freeman Later Revealed That Some Fan Reactions Made His Role Challenging
The third series ofSherlockwas the most-watched drama series in the U.K. The fans were even more active and this proved to be somewhat challenging for Martin Freeman when he returned for the fourth series. During an interview with The Guardian, Freeman opened up about how fan reactions to the chemistry between Watson and Sherlock had made his role more challenging.
Some fans theorized that Watson and Sherlock were romantically involved, and they were utterly disappointed when the series didn’t head in that direction. Freeman toldThe Guardian:
“By the time we filmed the last ones there were some fans who were so adamant that John and Sherlock were gay, they knew it. And they knew that Steven [Moffat] and Mark [Gatiss] were going to write an episode where we held hands off into the sunset together. So when that didn’t happen, there was a chunk of people going, ‘This is betrayal’.”
However,Sherlockactress Amanda Abbington felt that the final series catered to much of the fandom stuff, rather than staying truthful to the original story. However, she later went back on this statement, tweeting that series 4 was spot on.Sherlockis now available for rent on AppleTV+.
Also Read:Benedict Cumberbatch’s One Good Habit Changed His Hollywood Career, Even Oprah Winfrey and Dakota Johnson Would Agree With the Doctor Strange Star
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
