MOSCOW, January 27 (Sputnik) – British actor Benedict Cumberbatch apologized after referring to black actors as “colored” during an interview on US television, saying he is “devastated to have caused offense.”
“I think as far as colored actors go, it gets really different in the UK, and a lot of my friends have had more opportunities here [in America] than in the UK, and that’s something that needs to change.”
Following the interview, people started condemning the actor for his choice of terminology on social media, with many labeling it 'racist' and 'inappropriate', reports Daily Mail.
What's this about Benedict Cumberbatch using colourful language on TV? Always struck me as a bit of a wordsmith.
— Bobby P (@Bobby_P) January 26, 2015
Cumberbatch responded by issuing an apology, “I'm devastated to have caused offense by using this outmoded terminology. I offer my sincere apologies. I make no excuse for my being an idiot and know the damage is done.”
The actor was in a race controversy last year, when Stacey Cumberbatch, a city commissioner in New York, told the New York Times that she believed Cumberbatch’s fifth great-grandfather had owned her ancestors, who were held at a sugar plantation in Barbados, reports The Guardian.
Cumberbatch admitted of his family’s past as slave owners and exposed that his mother once advised him to not use his name professionally in case of damage claims by the descendants of slaves.
Cumberbatch has been nominated for an Oscar for his performance in The Imitation Game.
