Benedict Cumberbatch News: Actor Says Buddhism Gives Him ‘Grace And Ease’ In Doctor Strange

Benedict Cumberbatch may just be known for being a hunky British actor who made girls swoon for being a mysterious spy or scientist in movies but we never knew that he is also spiritual.

In a recent interview with a Buddhist publication, Lions Roar, the actor shared how Buddhism has shaped his acting powers giving him ease and grace in his upcoming movie, Doctor Strange.

"As an actor you are looking for the infinite. If you can hold that, if you can remember that in the chaos, it will anchor you and give you grace and ease," the actor said.

It was learned that the 39-year old actor has spent a year teaching English among Buddhist monks in a Tibetan monastery in India. The stint may have been an adventure to the actor considering it provides free food and lodgings but a source said that the stay is not totally luxurious are times when he had to learn within very limited means.

During the interview, he expressed his fascination on the meeting point of Western logic and Eastern mysticism in that experience.

"It was like, okay, I've got to keep throwing these poses, these spells, these rune-casting things, everything he does physically. I'm thinking, there's going to be a huge amount of speculation and intrigue over the positioning of that finger as opposed to it being there, or there. And I'm still working on that. We haven't played any of those scenes yet. I felt really self-conscious. But, then, by the end, it was great. It's like anything, you just have to experiment," he said.

His short stay in Nepal has not only been enlightening to him as he learned about Buddhism but also because he received a private blessing from a monk.

Doctor Strange is scheduled to be released in November this year. Benedict Cumberbatch will star alongside with 12 Years a Slave star Chiwetel Ejiofor.