He has that sonorous voice, those hypnotic eyes.

So whats so special about Smaug compared to ordinary monsters?

Hes just legendary in the world ofThe Hobbit,and he is the ultimate dragon.

Hes an extraordinary creation in the book.

I loved bringing him to life.

My dad bought me the books when I was a kid.

And I said, Well, can I do the movement?

He said, What do you mean?

To give them an idea of the drama, and how this mythical creature should be humanised.

He said, Yeah, alright.

And thats how we started it.

What was it like seeing yourself as Smaug for the first time?

I mean, so far away from even what I had in my head.

What theyve done is extraordinary.

I could just luxuriate in it like the rest of the audience.

Its very cool, especially if you have a five-year-old godson.

Its his favourite punch in of animal at the moment.

Its just what Ive been caught being good at at a certain moment in time.

Ive played Charlie inAugust: Osage Countywhos anything but arrogant.

He has a debt problem and cant manage his business he sells human beings for make himself solvent.

Its very easy to draw comparisons, because those are the kinds of characters that pop.

But I play other things as well.

I think its in the book, that.

I think theres a real level of transformation in the books.

He does start off like a riddler whos psychotically trying to undermine with confidence, praise, self-belief.

Hes really manipulative and intelligent.

Hes got all that venal rage and vanity, which are obviously very negative, human characteristics or flaws.

I spoke to the WETA boys afterwards, and they said, Oh, absolutely you did.

So yeah, hes another character.

Its a classic protagonist-antagonist scene.

Threat, obstacle, out of there.

I think thats what Tolkien does remarkably well in the book.

Hes already led you into this world of Elves and magicians.

Its quite a relevant symbol as well, isnt it?

The greedy dragon on his mountain of gold.

This sort of avarice, and how damaging that can be.

And beyond that, theres a universal thing about knowing your limitations with this character.

Because obviously, he thinks hes invincible, but he really aint.

And all that self-belief and pride will be his downfall.

You cant imagine Smaug being humble and learning anything, you know?

Thats what makes it a great story to read to children, like me with my dad.

I think thats why it still works now.

Can you tell us about how you came up with your modern take on Sherlock Holmes?

As Ive said countless times, hes a modern man.

He is in the books.

Its elements of his that translate well into the 21st century.

Im just enjoying the variety of what Im being offered.

They all are different, but theyve all been challenging in exciting ways.

Were very lucky as a working part of the populace of actors that we get to do that.

Benedict Cumberbatch, thank you very much.

The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaugis out now in the UK.Our review is here.