Benedict Cumberbatch went about 6 days without washing during his 12-week shoot for 'The Power of The Dog'

• Benedict Cumberbatch stars in Jane Campion's new film "The Power of The Dog" as a cruel rancher.
• The actor stayed in character for the film's entire 12-week shoot.
• Cumberbatch told The Hollywood Reporter that also meant he didn't wash for up to six days.

Benedict Cumberbatch stayed in character for the entire 12-week production for his upcoming film, "The Power of The Dog," which included him not washing for up to six days.

In "The Power of The Dog," which was directed by Kiwi filmmaker Jane Campion, Cumberbatch plays a roughneck ranch handler called Phil Burbank.

Cumberbatch told The Hollywood Reporter during a recent profile that Campion asked him to remain in character for the entire shoot to perfect his depiction of Burbank.

"[Jane Campion] introduced me to the crew as Phil and said, 'You'll meet Benedict at the end. Benedict's really nice. Phil is Phil,'" Cumberbatch recalled.

While Cumberbatch did admit that he did return to himself with his family in the evenings, he revealed that he also spent periods of up to six days without washing, just as his character does in the film. He also exclusively listened to the music of Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood on his way to set. (Greenwood wrote the film's score.)

Later Cumberbatch told the publication that he found it hard to shake Burbank's presence when production concluded and was forced to "grieve him."

"The Power of The Dog" premiered at the Venice Film Festival last week. The film, which is Campion's first in over a decade, is an adaptation of a novel of the same name by Thomas Savage. It follows Cumberbatch's Phil Burbank who is a handsome, intelligent yet often cruel rancher in 1920s Montana whose desires, secrets, and fears are painfully challenged and exposed.

It happens when his brother George (Jesse Plemons) brings home a new wife Rose (Kirsten Dunst) and her son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee) who becomes a subject of ridicule and then attraction over the course of a summer break.

In a rave review of the film, Insider praised Cumberbatch as the standout performer.

"His performance is commanding and brave: to put it simply, Cumberbatch has never been this good," the review said.

Jessie Plemons and Kirsten Dunst also star. Netflix is set to give the film a limited theatrical release on November 17, 2021, prior to making it available to stream on December 1.