Toronto Film Festival: Benedict Cumberbatch to receive TIFF Tribute Actor Award

Benedict Cumberbatch will receive the 'TIFF Tribute Actor Award' at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival. Other actors and directors are also slated to receive the aforementioned early acting awards. Here's all you need to know about why they're being honoured - 

Benedict Cumberbatch to receive TIFF honour award

British actor and fan-favourite Sherlock Holmes will receive the TIFF Tribute Actor Award at the upcoming Toronto Film Festival, in September. In addition to honouring Cumberbatch, the festival will also screen two of his films The Power of the Dog and The Electrical Life of Louis Wain.

This year's Toronto International Film Festival Tribute Awards gala will be part of Toronto's hybrid digital and in-person event and will run from September 9 through September 18. 

Executive director and co-head of TIFF, Joana Vicente, in a statement on Thursday, explained the festival's decision behind honouring the Marvel actor. She said: 

Benedict has portrayed some of the most memorable characters screened at TIFF, whether it was Alan Turing in The Imitation Game or Julian Assange in The Fifth Estate. He also has an uncanny ability to take on interesting, complex roles and make them his own in films such as 12 Years a Slave and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy — all of which screened at the festival.

Apart from Benedict Cumberbatch, the Toronto Film Festival will also honour Jessica Chastain and Canadian directors Alanis Obomsawin and Denis Villeneuve with early Tribute awards, Reports also claim that additional TIFF Tribute Award recipients will be announced in the coming weeks. The TIFF Tribute Awards honour leading industry members, acting and directorial talent, new talent and below-the-line artists and creators.

Benedict Cumberbatch's upcoming projects 

Academy Award-nominee Benedict Cumberbatch will next be seen in Netflix's The Power of The Dog along with Jane Campion in the director's chair. Cumberbatch will also star in the upcoming biographical drama film, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, with Will Sharpe directing.

In addition, the Sherlock actor will also appear in two highly anticipated Marvel films, the first being Spider-Man: No Way Home, which stars Tom Holland as the titular character. The second film will be Cumberbatch's own, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The actor will reprise his role as Dr Stephen Strange in both films and will also voice his character in an upcoming episode of Marvel's What If...?. 

IMAGE - AP