Benedict Cumberbatch apologizes for ‘Zoolander 2’ role

Benedict Cumberbatch and the Controversy Surrounding Zoolander 2

Benedict Cumberbatch listened to the feedback.

The Apology and Reflection

The British star, 48, “had to apologize” for his role as the nonbinary model All in Zoolander 2 “quite a lot,” making it “a difficult one to talk about,” he recently told Variety.

“I loved that group of people and it was a chance to sort of be part of something that the first time around was iconic and I was a huge fan,” he continued. “Then it got complicated, and it got misunderstood, and I upset people, and I respect that. So I probably wouldn’t do that again now.”

The Reception of Zoolander 2

The sequel to the zany, 2001 sendup of the fashion industry arrived in theaters in 2016 and featured most of the same cast and creative team as its predecessor. The film was again helmed by star Ben Stiller, who wrote the script along with co-writers Justin Theroux, John Hamburg, and Nicholas Stoller, and featured a great cast, including Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell, Christine Taylor, Milla Jovovich, and Jerry Stiller in his final screen role. Zoolander 2 nevertheless underperformed at the box office and received middling reviews.

In 2016, Entertainment Weekly described the film as “sad and desperate, like a comic who doesn’t know when to get off stage.”

Cumberbatch was just starting out as an actor when the first Zoolander was released. A bona fide star after his Academy Award-nominated turn in 2014’s The Imitation Game, Cumberbatch landed the kind of minor role in Zoolander 2 designed to steal the show. But while many critics complained Stiller & Co. didn’t take the comedy far enough in the film overall, Cumberbatch’s character raised eyebrows for the opposite reason.

The Role of All in Zoolander 2

The Power of the Dog star plays All, a non-binary model presented as “the biggest supermodel in the whole world right now” whose entire purpose in Zoolander 2 is to set up punchlines for jokes about non-cisgender identity.

“So, are you like a male model or a female model?” Stiller’s Derek Zoolander asks upon meeting Cumberbatch’s character, who replies, “All is not defined by binary constructs.” But Wilson’s Hansel McDonald pushes the inquiry to a crude extreme: “That’s cool, I don’t like labels either, but I think he’s asking whether you have a hot dog or a bun?”

Benedict Cumberbatch in 2025.

Christopher Polk/Variety via Getty

Controversy and Reflection

The film was met shortly after its release with accusations of transphobia. One online petition described Cumberbatch’s character as an “over-the-top, cartoonish mockery of androgyne/trans/non-binary individuals” and “the modern equivalent of using blackface to represent a minority.”

Cumberbatch addressed the blowback in 2022 in an interview with his costar Penelope Cruz, saying, “I think in this era, my role would never be performed by anybody other than a trans actor,” citing “a lot of contention” around his role at the time.

Cumberbatch’s Defense and Future Roles

Cumberbatch offered a defense of the character, recalling, “I remember at the time not thinking of it necessarily in that regard, and it being more about two dinosaurs, two heteronormative clichés not understanding this new diverse world. But it backfired a little bit.”

Though the actor says he wouldn’t take on a role like All now, he did express openness to revisiting another part from his past in the Variety interview. “There’s always that itch to scratch,” he said of his titular Sherlock character, “but I think it would have to be the superlative version of what we’ve already achieved. And I would like a script to read.”

FAQs

Q: What role did Benedict Cumberbatch play in Zoolander 2?

A: Benedict Cumberbatch portrayed the non-binary model All in the film Zoolander 2, which sparked controversy and criticism.

Q: How did Benedict Cumberbatch address the backlash from his role in Zoolander 2?

A: Benedict Cumberbatch acknowledged the criticism and apologized for his role, stating that he would approach such roles differently in the future.

Credit: ew.com