Benedict Cumberbatch Opens Up About His Toxic Cowboy Character In 'Power Of The Dog'

Benedict Cumberbatch is opening up about his character in Jane Campion's new film, "The Power of the Dog."

The period piece, which premiered during the 78th Venice International Film Festival on Sept. 2, marks the New Zealand filmmaker's first movie in 12 years and is based on Thomas Savage's 1967 novel. The story follows wealthy rancher brothers in the isolated hills of 1925 Montana whose thin bond is strained further when one (Jesse Plemons) marries a widow (Kristen Dunst) with an adolescent son (Kodi Smit-McPhee).

In the film, Cumberbatch's sexually subdued cowboy character grapples with violent impulses following his brother's decision.

Explaining his character's motivations at a digital panel Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival, the Oscar nominee said, "This character isn't existing in a vacuum. It's hard to watch what he does... if our work has succeeded, you understand his motivations, and you should move toward an empathy for him, or at least an understanding," according to Entertainment Weekly.

"Not to condone his behavior, it's part of the warning of the story, the moral of toxic masculinity is often born out of repression and feelings of being gaslighted or washed out or not allowed. There's no space or cultural space or tolerance of them, not just his sexuality, which is a huge part of that, but also the performative nature of his masculinity," he told the audience.

The English actor added that the character's removal from "this other sensual, private part of him that the film slowly reveals" predicates his actions and ultimately leads to impostor syndrome and "alienated feelings."

"He feels that the world is against him, and he hates on it before it can hate on him," Cumberbatch continued, later adding: "We move forwards as a society if we can see past the behavior toward the motivations towards an understanding, we don't if we just cast these people aside as the bad guys and throw away the key."

Following the "Power of the Dog's" premiere, some fans predicted that Cumberbatch may win his first Oscar for his performance in the movie. A number also had the same prediction for Kristen Stewart, who recently portrayed Princess Diana in the film "Spencer."

"Benedict Cumberbatch’s surly cattle rancher in 'The Power of the Dog' and Kristen Stewart’s caged Princess Diana in 'Spencer' will be in the running for their first Oscar wins," one tweeted.

"The first half of 'The Power of the Dog' felt slow and insufferable. But surprisingly, I enjoyed the second half. It gets better as it goes along, I guess. Anyways, the film should only get 3 Oscar noms: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kodi Smit-McPhee and the cinematography. That’s it," another user wrote.

"The Power of the Dog" will be released in select theaters on Nov. 17. It will begin streaming on Netflix on Dec. 1.