Cumberbatch is to voice the purring baddie in Serkiss version of The Jungle Book, which competes with Jon Favreaus alternate take, in which Elba plays Mowglis arch-enemy
Benedict Cumberbatch will voice the villainous tiger Shere Khan in Andy Serkiss version of the Jungle Book, one of two competing takes on the iconic Rudyard Kipling tale being put together in Hollywood.
Serkis is making his directing debut on Warner Bross reimagination of Kiplings 1894 fable, which will arrive in cinemas on 21 October 2016. A separate version from Disney, with Jon Favreau in charge of the cameras and Idris Elba lined up to voice Shere Khan, is due 12 months earlier.
Shere Khan, a nefarious man-eating tiger who views Kiplings hero Mowgli as his lifelong enemy, was voiced by George Sanders in Disneys animated 1967 musical version of The Jungle Book, thus far the most famous incarnation. Both new films appear to be based largely on the chapter Mowgli and his Brothers in Kiplings book, which has traditionally been used as the source material for a number of Hollywood adaptations over the years.