Benedict Cumberbatch is one of the most versatile actors in the industry. He has been giving top-notch performances in every part that he takes on. And, when Disney announced a slew of new Star Wars shows at their Investor Day in December 2020, fans went crazy. Fans were eager to see Benedict Cumberbatch play Grand Admiral Thrawn, one of the show’s most memorable antagonists in Ahsoka.
Viewers were excited to see him only for the role though many other actors could play the famed antagonist role in the movie. Later all got saddened as he had turned down the role of Thrawn, even before Disney and Lucasfilm made a potential offer.
Benedict Cumberbatch was a Popular Fan Pick as Thrawn But Had No Interest in Taking on the Role
Benedict Cumberbatch, the Doctor Strange actor in an interview with Collider, said that he has no interest in taking up such a role that would need hours of painstaking makeup each day.
“That’s a straight no from me, right now,” Cumberbatch told Collider.
“There’s no way I want to be turned blue. I turned the air blue, very recently. No no, seriously, I have precious time with my children and I think sitting in a makeup chair and being painted blue, and the amount of time it would take to do that and then take it off at the end of the day might just… it’s not the right time in my life for that.”
Fans felt that Benedict Cumberbatch was the perfect fit to play Grand Admiral Thrawn owing to his appearance and ability to play “calculated and sinister” roles.
Benedict Cumberbatch Joked He Never Heard of the Character
Fans were manifesting Cumberbatch taking up the role of Grand Admiral Thrawn. When the actor turned down the role, fans were disappointed. It was understandable though. Also, we have to respect Cumberbatch’s decision as well.
In the interview with Collider, the actor made a joke about the villain’s name when he was told it was Grand Admiral Thrawn.
“Grand Admiral Thrawn? Does he turn into Peter Cushing, or something?”
Grand Admiral Thrawn originally debuted in the 1991 novel Star Wars: Heir to the Empire. While the character initially appeared primarily in Bantam’s Star Wars novels and Dark Horse’s Star Wars comics, he later entered into Disney’s official Star Wars canon when he appeared in the latter two seasons of the animated series Star Wars Rebels.
While Rosario Dawson stars as Ahsoka Tano, reprising her role from The Mandalorian, Lars Mikkelsen, a Danish actor who is best known for his roles in The Killing and House of Cards played the role, despite fans’ demand for Benedict Cumberbatch.
Ahsoka is airing exclusively on Disney.
Source: Collider
