First of all, I want to give Metro UK a hug for writing this headline: “Benedict Cumberbatch shows off his post-baby body, gets back to work after two days off.” Amazing, right? We should start doing that – referring to new fathers as having a “post-baby body.” Anyway, as you’ve probably guessed, we’re talking about the Cumberbaby and the Cumberbaby’s father. On Saturday, media outlets got the confirmation that Benedict and Sophie Hunter had welcomed a bouncing baby otter boy. There was no confirmation as to when Sophie gave birth, and I feel pretty confident saying that she did not give birth on Friday or Saturday. I think Bendy and Sophie waited days (possibly even a week or two) to announce the birth. That’s just my theory. So is it a big deal that Benedict barely took any paternity leave?
Benedict Cumberbatch has returned to work just days after his wife Sophie Hunter gave birth to their ‘beautiful son’. Cumberbatch has begun rehearsing for his role as Hamlet in a new production at the Barbican in London. The show will run from August to October.
It will be the Oscar-nominated actor’s first stage role since Frankenstein at the National Theatre in 2011. The Sherlock star tied the knot with Hunter in a private ceremony in February.
The arrival of the couple’s first child was announced on Saturday. A spokesperson told People.com: ‘Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter are delighted to announce the arrival of their beautiful son. We would kindly ask everyone to respect the family’s privacy during these next few precious weeks.’
Benedict returned to work just days after the announcement, it still isn’t clear if he actually got a solid week to bond with the baby before a grueling rehearsal schedule began. I totally respect men who take paternity leave, even if their jobs are high-profile and they get mountains of abuse for it – remember when Mets player Daniel Murphy was blasted last year for missing the first two games of the season? He handled it really well and said that he wanted to be there for his wife. I guess Sophie can handle everything well enough without Benedict though. Sigh…
Photos courtesy of WENN.
His life, his business. But if I was a man in his position and with his money, I would most definitely take a few weeks off. Maybe he couldn’t get out of his contract…
It’s more than that..in this position, if he doesn’t show up the jobs of a lot of people are put on hold..or lost
I know what you mean, but when did he found about the baby? It’s not really something that happens suddenly is it? We can find all the excuses we want, but if he really wanted he could’ve passed some jobs he knew would fall right after the birth of his child. Another actor would take his place. I try really hard to not be judgemental but I just can’t accept that a father sort of accepts that because the mother gave birth and she has the milk he can just simply go on to do his stuff like nothing happened. They made the baby together ffs! And they certainly have a choice financially. I’m sorry if I’m ranting but I really think this is important:/
@ Sofia
Hamlet was planned with way more foresight than this kid was, haha. He committed to Hamlet about 18 months ago. It was supposed to happen last year but was pushed back .
Well, what if he was sick? They would have to find a solution, right? I’m not saying it would be easy and he wouldn’t upset anyone, I’m talking about priorities.
Yeah, I don’t think his new paternity would get him out of a contract, and agree there are a number of jobs (and investors) involved.
@Sophia
If a lead actor in a big theatre production got sick and needed more than a few days off it would be a major disaster and probably lead to many people losing their jobs and the production losing a lot of money or having to make a big insurance claim. Unless he had an understudy which presumably BC does, but it’d still be a big deal.
Besides this is normal for the UK, for dads to go back to work straightaway. Anyway rehearsing a play is not nearly as onerous as filming. I don’t know how Turner likes to work, but the RSC rehearses 10-5 Mon-Fri, as does the National. It’s hard word, very much so, but it’s not long hours. At least not until you reach the get-in stage. Once first night is over the actors aren’t called until about an hour before curtain up which means they have most daytimes free.
I feel like the only person who REALLY makes a big deal about paternity leave is Wee Willie Wales.
Those are horrid pictures of her. Honestly, I don’t care for him either way, but he seems very into himself/his career, so I don’t doubt that he took very limited time off.
Like so many other new dads. Paternity leave especially here in the us is a luxury. Hope everyone is doing well.
Yep, most companies here make men use vacation time. It sucks. Having a baby in Sep. and I’m already depressed that my husband will have to go back to work 2-3 days later.
My husband took family leave act after our oldest came home from the hospital because he was very, very premature and spent his first several months in the NICU. He had to go through all his vacation and sick leave first before the leave would cover the last few weeks, and even then his boss came to see us to tell him the higher ups were plotting against his return. He went back early, and his colleagues acted like he had betrayed them by wanting to be with his very sick child and *gasp* exercising his federally protected right to do so. When I got pregnant again he didn’t even tell his work until a few days before #2 was born to avoid the backlash. I don’t have great things to say about paternity leave in the US.
Damn, Carol. When did empathy die with some people.
And maternity leave is no better, there is none. There is only 12 weeks of FMLA. Most people who don’t live in the US and enjoy their nice 1 year maternity leaves don’t believe me and think I am bad mouthing the US when I get on that particular soapbox.
@ Carol
I am sorry to hear that. I hope your family is well.
I knew women who were professors who went back to work after a C-section after 2 weeks for fear of losing their job! People don’t believe me when I tell these stories of the US in Canada.
If they have a nurse or a nanny, it’s no big deal I think. And they probably have a cook, a maid, a butler and a gardener, too.
I do find it a little bit weird, especially after all his talk about how desperate he was to become a dad. He does seem like a workaholic though so I suppose it’s not that surprising.
well, it’s a marathon not a sprint. and perhaps he preferred to spend more time but also wanted to work on a project that couldn’t wait. as long as she’s ok with it…
She was last seen in those pictures which was what, end of May so she could have had the baby anytime between them and now and only released the news now. Given he’d be starting Hamlet he’d be back out and about which gives them their privacy to enjoy the baby for a few weeks before announcing it. Totally fair enough.
He’s committed to the part for the last 18 months+ and it has a fixed start date so what else was he going to do?
Agree. I bet that if they had planned the pregnancy, he would have allowed more time for paternity leave. Hamlet was already set in stone when he realized that a baby was on the way. His hands were tied, really.
I personally think he’s had at least a couple of weeks to bond with the babe, so by American standards, that’s a normal paternity leave if you can afford to take the time off.
Agree, the baby came when the baby came. He will be plenty needed by the child in the years ahead and have more control over his time as his son grows. He doesn’t seem like someone to shirk his personal commitments.
The timing could be worse actually, the more I think about it. At least he’s not committed to a project that is filming on location in some remote corner of the world. Most of his major work commitments are UK-based for the better part of the next year so he’ll be close to home at least.
Hamlet might be the roughest part to navigate, but surely both the Doctor Strange and Sherlock productions will allow Mom, the Batchling and any nannies liberal visiting privileges. There is a lot of down time on film sets, so even if he’s at the studio for 14 hours days, he could turn his trailer into a tricked out nursery and still have lots of quality time between shots. The mental image of him walking around in full costume with a baby carrier strapped to his chest gives me the giggles. Someone make this happen please.
@dara
HAHAHAHA!!! Batchling!! I almost had my drink come out of my nose!! Love “batchling”!!
@jezza, I wish I could claim Batchling as my own, but I think someone else came up with it first. I love it so much I fully intend to keep using it at every opportunity (at least until we know the little guy’s actual name). It’s so much better than the alternatives. Every time I see the word Cumberbaby in print I want to Cumberbarf.
Exactly. And he’ll probably only be working five days a week, 10am-5pm (at least that’s the standard schedule). That’s not exactly gruelling.
I was actually glad my husband went to work without a big break. His burning need to help was putting him always in my way.
I loved having my husband get in my way. The backward diaper, watching him get peed on, listening to him sing off key to the baby – those are some of my favorite memories.
I wish more fathers could take a couple of months off to bond with the baby. We were lucky that my hubby works from home a lot.
I loved having my husband home for a couple of weeks. Since he was self-employed, it was a financial hardship, but worth it. Since my son was in the hospital the first 12 days of his life, having him around was more for emotional support than doing things for me.
I had my husband for 3 days plus weekend. He was sort of helpless as much as the baby. And the second time around wasn’t much different And I disliked doing things twice with all the fatigue. After being peed on for a first time he turned around, spreading it in splashes and said:” Look what he did! Is this normal?” All he got was a giant eye-roll.
He is indispensable now, when the boys can talk and play and generally interact. He does a lot with them. But with a baby? Eh, no.
I thought people were saying it was a June 1 birth? If so, it’s not like he went straight from a hospital to a theatre.
Frankly, with Hamlet in August, and everybody waiting with their knives out for him, a couple of weeks seems like plenty. There’s really only so much staring you can do at a new baby before lots of people start getting antsy.
“and everybody waiting with their knives out for him”
You pretty much nailed it, hehe.
Hi Vesta!!! 🙋
*waves to EsCon*
Presuming a June 1st birth date, they kinda put themselves in a bad PR position by sitting on the news dontcha think? By making it look like it just happened, he looks more committed to his work than his family. Perhaps they should come clean on the date to show that perhaps he’s been home bonding with his boy?
I wouldn’t have assumed they had just had the baby though, just that they chose to announce it that day.
Putting themselves in a bad PR position seems to be par for the course with these two. Their public announcements of personal information keep colliding with his work milestones in really unfortunate ways. Who knows for sure whether the pregnancy was unplanned, but they often seem to be on PR defense, scrambling to get back ahead of an unanticipated development.
Hi Nutballs! Shall we hold our breath while we wait to hear the little Cumberling’s name? 🚼 I can barely stand the suspense.
Hello there EsCon!! I admit I’m kind of curious to see who does the little boy looks like. Can you imagine a miniature bald Benedict, hmm…?
EsCon, that is the next big news we need from his camp. I’ve already got the perfect name for them, I hope they are reading…
Timothy Henry Hunter Cumberbatch
I’m already calling him Henry, ’cause I like it so much. 🙂
Nutballs, that sounds fitting and sensible. Still, I’m hoping for something more eccentric…Wanderlust Timothy Mycroft Cumberbatch, perhaps.
@Nutballs, I also agree that’s a great name. But are we seeing opera, theater, and art in it?
Wandalust Timothy Ritz Carlton Cumberbatch?
Oh my God!! Look who it is! Curlsunited AND Vesta?! Did anyone bring Gloegg? I’ve run out.
Ritz Carlton Cumberbatch is fabulous! Fingers crossed.
And Nutballs—-I will keel over with shock if this wee boy isn’t named Henry. Both grandfather and great-grandfather were Henry, I think? So, we’ve named the baby for them. It will be some arrangement of the names Timothy, Henry, Carlton and they can call him Ritz. ( That can be his Rugby name. ) So now that’s sorted, he can concentrate on Hamlet.
We really are awesome, aren’t we EsCon? What would they do without us?
Hi EsCon! Isn’t there a rule that you should only consume Gloegg in a month with an “r” and drink rosé wine from May to August? (I stick to it religiously)
Curlsunited, nice to see you too here 🙌 !! You got me with the Wanda reference, there just HAS to be something for her… But Ritz Carlton, that’s the best: no hotel bills for the thrifty Cumberbatches ever again.
Oh well, all kidding aside and knowing Benedict, probably something very traditional & conservative is on the way.
But yes, I’ll also toast chilled rosé for it 🍷
Is he on location or in London? If he’s home every night maybe he’s doing the nightly feedings while she sleeps. He looks really happy in that photo and that’s nice to see.
He does look happy in that photo. But it was taken a couple of (or few?) months ago.
My husband did that for me with our kids. Having a solid 5 to 6 hours of sleep every night saved my bacon.
it helped that he didn’t have to go into work until 10 a.m. so he was able to sleep in each the morning
In London. And it’s theatre rehearsals, so it’ll probably be 10am-5 or 6pm Mon-Fri.
He’s just not that into her.
LOL That sums it up I think!
Oh! She’s very plain without makeup.
so is he
These are probably the worst pictures of her out there. I shudder to think what I looked like at 9 months pregnant. I am guessing like a unkempt and bloated serial murderer. I remember being quite pissed at everything and miserable, I didn’t speak much, just glared mostly. lol
That’s how I am right now, but now it’s because I’m going through menopause!
You youngin’s have so much to look forward to!
that’s about right. i mean, that’s the type of commitment you make with a stage play
He made this commitment long before the baby was conceived. In a career like that you have to work while you can because the work isn’t always going to be there
If you are working just to put food on the table I understand that, otherwise it’s about priorities. A play is not more important than a child and if he passed on the play as soon as he knew about the baby everyone involved would have time to find someone else. Are you telling me that his career would go down the drain if he stopped for 6 months?
@Sofia His play (Hamlet at the Barbicon) was sold out last August, likely before the baby was even conceived. I think that it’s safe to say that many of those people bought those tickets because Cumberbatch was attached, not due to an overwhelming desire to see Hamlet. Not at all saying a play is more important than a baby, just that it wouldn’t be a simple matter of “oh well, congratulations … we’ll just find someone else for the role.” I can’t even imagine the logistical nightmare of dealing with disappointed fans wanting refunds, especially as a fair number are traveling to London to see it. Also, it’s a role he’s been wanting to play for years and some already believe he’s a bit too old for the role. If he dropped out, it’s unlikely he’d get another opportunity to play Hamlet. Better he’s committed to a play in London for the next 4+ months than a film set far afield with even crazier and more unpredictable hours.
I didn’t know that and I understand. But if after the play he jumps again into another project well… we’ll see.
Well, he’s already committed to playing Dr. Strange and another season of Sherlock. I think both are scheduled to be released in 2017, so maybe he can get the rest of 2015 off, but I can’t imagine a longer break than that.
double post deleted.
What MaximeduCamp said. He’s Hamlet in “Hamlet.” If he had a minor role, then he probably could have taken a longer leave. But he’s not, so he couldn’t. I would also think that saying “Nope, I don’t want to do this anymore” would harm his chances for future work, too.
Keep in mind BC saw how hard it was for his parents to continue to find work as actors. He is probably living by the saying “Strike while the iron is hot” and I don’t blame him.
@MaximeduCamp – Dr. Strange starts filming November (2015) comes out November (2016)
Hamlet Rehearsals
Hamlet
Black Mass Premiere(s)/Interviews/promotional stuff/etc
Dr. Strange
I don’t see what the big deal is. Plenty of other actors went back to work as soon as their other halves gave birth and worked far harder and spent far more time away. Look at David Tennant, he’s barely been home or taken any time off since he first became a father, and his wife’s about to have their third child.
i always think “if i had that much money i would take a lot of time off work”. then i realize that thoughts like this are probably way i am not rich.
I don’t know, I actually think that rich people think that way, too. It’s like the more you have, the more you take it for granted and aspire to more.
>I don’t know, I actually think that rich people think that way, too.
Oh noooes, the self-made rich people still count every cent. This is how most of them got rich. Warren Buffer comes to mind.
Mila is right, to be rich you have to driven regardless of how much money you already have,
Yeah, and that is exactly what I said: that people never stop, no matter how much money they have.
It’s just an ever-moving goalpost is what I’m saying. When you make a national average, you think that if you made 6 figures for a while, you could afford to take more time off work, but when you make 6 figures, you think that about millionaires, and when you’re millionaire – you think that if only you were a multi-millionaire, you could afford to work less, etc., etc.
My father is a wealthy man because he pinches pennies every chance he gets and invests the majority of his money (mostly inherited)and lives off the interest. It is never enough. He has never approved of any man I’ve been with because they were “bums” and never had acceptable wealth. I get the impression my current long-term bf is tolerable because he is a professor, but not ideal. Money breeds unhappiness and unsatisfaction from my experience. I enjoyed my family more when we were pinching pennies because we had to.
Some commentaries here keep me remenbering a book called Eugènie Grandet
Well, anyone who follows him and knows about Hamlet always knew that was going to be the case, that was one of the reasons people insisted that this was an unplanned pregnancy: many speculated that if he were given a choice, he wouldn’t choose to have his first child 2 weeks before beginning rehearsals for the biggest theater role ever.
Exactly, Timbuktu. This was an oops baby, in no way planned. Hamlet was scheduled long before the baby (and most likely Sophie) even came into the picture. If things had been planned there wouldn’t be quite so much WTF-ery around. They would have had their act together as far as interviews, red carpet, sound bites, etc. As it is, they’re just winging it.
As for others saying he should just demand time off, I just don’t think that’s a possibility. He’s the lead actor. There’s gonna be a lot of work to do in a short amount of time. It’s not just learning lines, but staging, lighting, etc. He can’t just have some one stand-in for him. He’s gonna need to know what’s going on too.
Yep. For all of his faults media wise, he has never been anything but professional. It does not surprise me at all that he was ready for rehearsals.
My husband took off a week when our babies were born. In fact, our last child was maybe three weeks old and he went on a business trip across country. Those were crazy times. I’m so glad they’re all way older and passed that stage.
I might be wrong be that top picture of Ben isn’t new. It’s from when he was at the BBC recording Letters Live stuff with Loo. The one where coffee was had… by all. If you believe certain other rumors. But not showing off new daddy body. Neither have been seen since Primrose Hill. At least not photgraphed anyway;) But that should be over soon. He’s rehearsing every day. Someone will catch him either to or from rehearsal.
She is channeling Chrissie Hynde in these pics. If she did it on purpose, she gets bonus points from me.
Chrissie Hynde does not deserve this! But you are right, there is a ressemblance.
I’m traveling to see him play Hamlet in October! Excitement!
Me, too! October 19th, to be exact! The first part of my trip will be to London, then off to Paris to stuff my face with croissants, chocolate and cafe au laits!
And wine, right? You’ll be drinking lots of delicious wine?
Don’t forget the macarons! And oodles of fromage to go with the wine. So jealous right now, both for London and Paris, and even a teeny tiny little bit for Hamlet Pushes 40. Enjoy it all!
Oh, please. We all knew this was going to happen. Not only does he have a contract, but a whole roster of other people’s jobs to consider. Not to mention all those tickets! It’s a play, not a movie. People overseas have planned on going for a year now. Plus, it’s Hamlet! That role will never come round again for him.
Besides, I think Sophie gave birth anywhere from 2-4 weeks ago. Yeah, that long ago. They’ve been trying to make fudge out of this timeline like they’re opening a sweet shop. Let’s not kid ourselves. They have help. She looks like the type to hire a wet nurse, if it were still a thing.
This . . . .
All of that!
She “looks” the type? Are you one of those fan who think you know everything (all bad) about your celeb boyfriend’s romantic partners, despite never having met them or heard them speak or really knowing anything about them?
Great actor!!!!!!!!!!! 🙂 😉
More Sherlock please
pretty please?
Then there’s life for military families: my dad didn’t even see me until I was eight months old, and he wasn’t around for either of the births of his two children. They try harder these days, but it still happens alot.
My uncle missed the birth of all three of his while he was in the Marines. And my aunt spent long stretches of time with just the three kids and a dog on Marine bases in rather remote areas far away from family while he was overseas.
Well, that’s what happens when a savvy woman ensures that she gets knocked up to hook you: she doesn’t stop to think about your schedule, just hers. Right before awards season, too, so Cumberbatch had to focus on reworking his personal life, a wedding, getting used to the idea of a wife and baby, instead of focusing on his (disastrous) award season campaign, with the baby due to arrive just as he undertook the biggest stage role of his career.
I’m betting the baby arrived June 1st, so he’s had a week or two – and I’m sure (cough) Soph’s not struggling at home alone with the little one, but has a nurse full time and/or her Mum – it’s not like Hunter’s cleaning the loos in that posh townhome, is it?
He can use protection as well, there are couple of forms of contraception for men to avoid accidental pregnancy, condoms and stinking of bad beer.
Enough of all this getting knocked up to hook a man, it is the 21stCentury, they are adults and well and truly capable of having babies without getting married, committed or financially attached. Jude Law and Hugh Grant are prime examples of being the non-committed and having babies.
I am not saying it’s right, I am saying it’s their choice and the blame isn’t in one direction. I’m sick and tired of women having to be the one’s solely responsible for birth control discussions and getting the blame if it goes wrong.
tough luck Benedict, you could of used a condom and say no to marriage.
They were already unofficially engaged and planning the wedding before they found out she was pregnant. And really all the endless conspiracy theories because you can’t accept your Tumblr Boyfriend fell in love with someone else is just desperate and weird.
Spoken like a true nan who believes every single word that comes out of BC’s mouth. Anyone who thinks they got engaged before they realised she was pregnant is just believing the narrative he’s tried to spin since they went public. They got engaged because she found out she was pregnant. Why is that so hard for people to believe? It’s hardly scandalous.
@ Froop
No it is not scandalous but why should we believe that narrative, you are trying so desperately to spin, over the one time Benedict has spoken about it. (once! hardly trying to spin anything) He said, briefly, in one interview that while they were planning the wedding they found out she was pregnant. Many people plan a wedding before they officially announce an engagement.
Why is that so hard to believe?
because Maison Valentino said they had to rush the dress in 3 months? Why not give the designers plenty of time to create and design the dress of her dreams if they already started planning the wedding back then? Why were they never seen on the Isle of Wight until the end of November, looking for a place to get married? Why not look earlier, especially since they were in such a rush?
He himself said they weren’t engaged at the LFF red carpet even though she was pregnant and they surely knew.
Nobody knows the truth except them, though I’d bet good money it is a shotgun wedding. His shocked and zombified demeanour during the press tour immediately after the engagement announcement spoke volumes. The only people who make it as though the wedding is something shameful are those fans who make it a point to defend it to the hilt and strangely enough, Cumberbatch himself. It is 2015! He should name the baby Tietjens Cumberbatch.
@lolly, I wholeheartedly agree (and no, not bc it fits some broken-hearted fan girl narrative). Remember when he was quoted saying “we weren’t engaged then so there was no need to show off to the world” about LFF, all of the qualifiying and weirdly phrased explanations. Let’s not kid ourselves.
imo i don’t know what the truth is because i don’t know them personally but the whole ‘it’s 2015’ thing–like yeah that works if you’re just dealing with family and friends and none of them are stuck in the 1950s, but the whole ‘roll in the hay is pregnant’ angle still does not play out well in the press for the woman.
There may be some side-eyeing from the media but it would hardly be severe backlash. I don’t recall a hue and cry over Jennifer Garner being pregnant before marriage, or Abbington-Freeman still being unmarried, or Jolie having a gaggle of kids out of wedlock (her impact on the Pitt-Anniston marriage is a separate matter). These are women far more famous than Cumberbatch’s wife, who is a nobody until the engagement; she’s not stunning or particularly interesting, she runs in niche artsy circles that mainstream audiences are not into, and it’s not like she was married prior and cheated with Cumby.
Like Spittair said they went from not engaged so “no need to show off.” Then cut to like a week later and he’s engaged. That’s a big turn around. What changed? A positive pregnancy test. In this day and age, pregnancy before marriage isn’t that big a deal. But I think he’s a bit traditional or hung up on how he’s perceived in the public.
Saying that they were planning the wedding long before they knew she was pregnant sounds way better than she peed on a stick, found out she was pregnant and he said “Well I guess there’s nothing for it but to get married.”
Just doesn’t have the same ring to it as Troo Wuv.
because people knew those people were a couple already, not a roll in the hay baby, Lolly
think more how Catherine Harding, jude law’s ex, was treated upon pregnancy news. comment after comment about she was golddigger, whore, etc.
The majority of negativity I came across on Jude Law’s case was directed at him – a serial sleazebag with repeated affairs, fathering children after brief flings with models, not to mention the age difference between them. Plus, didn’t Harding join some reality show or contest where she admitted to courting fame. Their case is not really comparable to Cumberbatch IMO.
But at least we are agreed that it is a roll in the hay baby. Which is not uncommon nowadays. It was Cumby’s cloak and dagger behaviour, the timing with the Oscar campaign, his zombified awkwardness and the honeymoon photos which looked staged as hell which made it look more suspect than what I think it is – an actor accidentally knocking up an old friend. Could have just played it simple and low-key, and not open himself up to ridicule or famewhoring accusations.
Agreed @Lolly. It’s not the fact that he got someone pregnant and married her. That’s hardly earth shattering, considering how much he’s always wanted kids. It’s all the nonsense that came afterwards that got people side-eyeing.
Everytime he opened his mouth he would try to finesses or put a better spin on things, but then he’d end up making contradictory statments or saying just plain awkward bs. TWILTWIPT! Rather than selling true love it just muddied the waters further.
He went from a mildly embarrassing oops baby to having people wonder what he’s hiding. He would have been far better off just quitting while he was ahead. But I don’t think he knows to leave well enough alone.
I have respect for him but it must be difficult to marry someone you don’t know well and, from the looks of it, don’t really like very much. I wouldn’t have done it so he is a better person than I.
Anon123 they’ve known each other for something like 17 years, and dated since 2013.
Except they haven’t dated since 2013. Their romance didn’t kick off ‘until late summer 2014’ according to his friends.
Sophie’s brother stated that Sophie and Benedict became a couple in August, 2014. Bro accidently revealed the truth, which is the two were casual acquaintances, starting hooking up in June, Sophie got pregnant after a few dates and Benedict married her after being under tremendous pressure, either self-imposed or outside from her and her family.
For all the people who think he is awful for not taking paternity leave, you must live in Socialist countries. The guy has to make a living. The world does not stop spinning because he had a kid. People have to work for a living. It’s simple.
Not like he’s short of a buck or two though is it? He didn’t really have a choice. Hamlet sold out a year ago, they couldn’t change the date yet again.
He committed to Hamlet before he knew about the baby, he honored his commitment to the play is expected. He is committed to Sherlock 4 way long time ago, going to shoot next spring after Dr. Strange. The only one job that he signed on after knowing the pregnancy is Dr. Strange, which conveniently fitted into the slot between Hamlet and Sherlock. Which means he will be working non-stop from now on until the baby’s first birthday. We know he has no issue dropping out of project for career reason, he dropped out of CP and went without job for 6 months. It seems there’s no good reason for him to not take Dr. Strange.
So Ben should be much in the news again. Prepare for an onslaught of publicity. Doctor Strange is starting up. Scott Derrickson is in London and Hamlet Rehearsals are starting. I’ve seen rumours of a Edison film as well. Marvel pushes massively on the PR front. Someone said they would love to see a someone ask Ben a question about how he and his beloved share their mutual theatre interests. It would be fun to see him describe her various talents. His opinion on her take on Hamlet for instance would be enlightening. And very appropriate for the setting.