Benedict Cumberbatch on his Earth-saving eco film: ‘We are in the last grab of the extraction era’

From Obama’s chef to a big cat obsessive, the actor has gathered experts from all over the world for a film about how to heal our besieged planet. He talks about naysayers, elephant tusks – and the wonders of venison Benedict Cumberbatch is dreading stepping outside.

He’s speaking to me from his air-conditioned hotel room in Soho at the peak of the summer heat. Few doubt that climate breakdown was a major cause of those scorchers, with nature, farming and water supplies all placed under huge strain. By midsummer, according to a report co-authored by the Met Office , there were 2,700 excess deaths in England and Wales due to the searing heat. But for Cumberbatch, in a bittersweet way, the…