Benedict Cumberbatch thanked after “Doctor Strange” star became real-life hero to mugging victim

ABC/Randy Holmes(LONDON) — Benedict Cumberbatch went from on-screen hero to a real-life one last week, fighting off four attackers trying mug a man in London.

Known for his blockbuster roles as Dr. Strange in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and as Sherlock Holmes on BBC’s Sherlock, the actor was taking an Uber with his wife in London when he spotted four muggers attacking a bicycling food deliveryman.

According to witnesses, it looked just like an action scene: Cumberbatch jumped out, shouting at the muggers, “Leave him alone!” before pulling the criminals off the bloodied victim.

The driver of the Uber, Manuel Dias, told the The Sun that he didn’t recognize the actor until he sprang into action — leading him to follow suit. “I had hold of one lad and Benedict another. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing. He was very brave,” said Dias.  “He did most of it, to be honest. They tried to hit him but he defended himself and pushed them away….Then, I think they also recognized it was Benedict and ran away.”

Incidentally, the incident went down just a short distance from 221b Baker Street, the fictional London home of Sherlock Holmes.

Cumberbatch’s heroics made headlines around the world. He even got a thank-you from the beleaguered deliveryman’s employer, Deliveroo, which thanked the actor in a tweet over the weekend.

For his part, when asked by The Sun about his actions, the actor modestly said, “I did it out of, well, I had to, you know .”

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