Paola Kudacki for TIME

Is it any wonder after the year Benedict Cumberbatch has had that he’s caught the notice of Time Magazine and their illustrious “100 Most Influential People” list? I think not! After stellar performances in films such as, Star Trek: Into Darkness, 12 Years A Slave, August: Osage County, The Fifth Estate, Little Favour and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug…not to mention starring in the hit BBC series, Sherlock, Cumberbatch has become Britain’s hottest export.

Scripts are piling up on his doorstep, studios and top directors now have him on speed-dial, female fans around the world dedicated hours of internet time to Facebook pages created in his honor (Cumberlord-Benedict Cumberbatch, the Quintessential British Man; Benedict Cumberbatch’s Voice; I Am Cumberbatched…) and indeed the whole world seems to have been “Cumberbatched” since he first arrived on the scene as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective, making deerstalker caps sexy for the first time…ever.

But that’s a whole other article. Today we spotlight the Cumberbabe’s latest accomplishment, being named to Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list in a group that includes Beyonce, Hilary Clinton and The Pope along with three other Brits: his 12 Years A Slave director, Steve McQueen, banker Andrew Haldane and Net-a-Porter founder Phoebe Philo.

But we can see something in Benedict’s aura that no other person on this list has.  A silent, dangerous mystery waiting to be unfolded. Take a look at this behind the scenes video of his photo shoot and you’ll see what I mean:

Each person on the Top 100 list had someone write a piece on them. Cumberbatch’s countryman and co-star in Tinker Tailor Solider Spy, Colin Firth (who made the list in 2011) wrote a brilliant and quite funny tribute to his friend who he calls “alarmingly talented” Here it is it its entirety:

The Alarmingly Talented English Star

When I was about 25 years old, I worked with two very good actors. The encounters were brief, but I’ve remembered them both with great admiration. Wanda Ventham and Timothy Carlton both embodied qualities which one is fogyishly tempted to look at with nostalgia. Along with very considerable talent, they had elegance, glamour, wit, kindness and decency.

I didn’t know at the time that they were married or that they had a son of about 10 who was quietly gestating all the same attributes. And now, 30 years later, the boy has been let loose. He has taken the form of Benedict Cumberbatch.

His parents’ qualities are on rampant display. It’s rare to the point of outlandish to find so many variables in one actor, including features which ought to be incompatible: vulnerability, a sense of danger, a clear intellect, honesty, courage — and a rather alarming energy. I take no pleasure in feeling humbled, but there’s no getting around it.

He must be stopped.

I think it’s pretty safe to say, this train has left the station and there’s no stopping it. And quite frankly, why would you?

To get your CumberFill…”Like” the following pages dedicated to Benedict Cumberbatch on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/cumbercollectiveunite?fref=pb&hc_location=profile_browser

https://www.facebook.com/IAmCumberbatchedByBen

https://www.facebook.com/cumberlordbenedict?fref=ts

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