Benedict Cumberbatch defends MCU films but says we ‘should support auteur filmmakers’

Benedict Cumberbatch took a break from viewing infinite realities to offer up his opinion on the whole "comic-book-movies-aren't-true-cinema" debate that's been raging for the entire month of October.

While speaking on Sirius XM's Jenny McCarthy Show, the Doctor Strange star discussed his love of smaller-budgeted projects, which he hopes to see continue, but also made a point to defend superhero movies as a verifiable form of art.

“I know there’s been a lot of debate recently with very fine filmmakers coming to fore, saying that these film franchises are taking over everything," he said, alluding to recent, polarizing comments made by Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola. "But lucky [are] us actors who get to do both kinds of variety at either polarity of budgeting. I agree, I don’t want one king to rule it all and have a kind of monopoly. Hopefully, that’s not the case and we should really be looking into continuing to support auteur filmmakers at every level.”

Earlier today, we reported on what Jon Favreau and Bob Iger had to say about the raging dialogue over whether comic book movies can be considered cinema. Where Favreau was a little more gracious with his thoughts, Iger didn't pull any punches by voicing his annoyance on behalf of all the hard-working people behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"It is a form of artistry, however it's denigrated by some," added Cumberbatch, echoing Iger's take on things. "I think it still requires a hell of a lot of craft at a very high level and the popularity speaks to that, as well as whatever else it's about."

Cumberbatch will return to the MCU via Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Directed by Scott Derrickson, the horror-centric sequel (opening in theaters May 7, 2021) will tie into the events of WandaVision on Disney+.