Benedict Cumberbatch & Robert Downey Jr. Shut Down A Goofy Meta Joke On Marvel Sets

It has been openly observed by the world's many Marvel Movie fans that Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.) and Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) are very alike, even down to their origin stories. Iron Man was once a brash, overconfident playboy, skilled at engineering, and happy to womanize. After being kidnapped by terrorists, however, he had a chance to reflect on his selfishness and used his isolation to invent a high-tech suit of armor that would, when correctly deployed, rid the world of weapons of mass destruction. Doctor Strange, meanwhile, was once a brash, overconfident playboy, skilled at surgery, and happy to womanize. After a terrible car accident, however, he had a chance to reflect on his selfishness and used his isolation to study mystical arts. 

Strange went seeking his redemption, while Iron Man came upon it by chance, but their redemption arcs run parallel. Also, Iron Man was a tech-based character while Strange used magic, but technology and magic become pretty chummy in the world of superheroes. Most notably, both characters have creatively shaved goatees, drawing more invitations to comparison. 

As it so happens, actors Downey and Cumberbatch have something in common as well: they have both played Sherlock Holmes in high-profile adaptations of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's greatest work. Downey played the role in the 2009 Guy Ritchie film "Sherlock Holmes," and its 2011 sequel, "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows." Cumberbatch, meanwhile, played an updated version of the character in the 2010 BBC TV series "Sherlock." 

Both actors appeared in 2018's "Avengers: Infinity War" together, and they were quick to acknowledge their shared past playing the famed detective. Of course, once they both realized their commonalities, they kind of had to stop themselves from making jokes about it constantly. That, at least, was what Cumberbatch said in a recent interview with Variety. 

According to Cumberbatch, Downey was a professional, but he also knew how to keep the mood light on a massive, multi-hundred-million-dollar production like "Avengers: Infinity War." Downey was known to joke around and gently rib his co-stars. He called Cumberbatch "Mr. Shakespeare," alluding to the Brit's career playing in Shakespearean productions throughout his career. This was rich, coming from Downey, who appeared in Richard Loncraine's 1995 film of "Richard III." But no matter, the joke stood. 

Cumberbatch also noted the Sherlock Holmes jokes Downey made, and addressed a line of dialogue that had to be changed as a result. He said: 

"We had a gas about being the two Sherlocks on set. [...] But there was some line of dialogue where someone turns to us and says, 'No s***, Sherlock.' Well, we took out all that meta stuff. We just said, 'No, no, no. Better to leave that for the fan fiction.'"

Indeed, it would have been a little too cheeky — even in a notoriously cheeky series like the Marvel Cinematic Universe — to include meta jokes about how the actors both played Sherlock Holmes. That sort of thing would be better left to a "Deadpool" movie, wherein the title character jokes about Hollywood resumes all the time. 

In another fun piece of Sherlock-related synergy, Cumberbatch starred in a National Theater production of "Frankenstein" opposite Johnny Lee Miller back in 2011. The gimmick of the production was that Miller and Cumberbatch would take turns playing Dr. Frankenstein and the Monster. By coincidence, Miller also played Sherlock Holmes in all 154 episodes of the 2012 series "Elementary." Cumberbatch, it seems, finds his fellow Sherlocks.