Benedict Cumberbatch is Shere Khan in Serkis’ Jungle Book

[Source: ComingSoon.net]

Benedict Cumberbatch is KHANNNNN again! This time Cumberbatch will be the voice of Shere Khan in Andy Serkis’ “The Jungle Book.”

We recently confirmed the cast of Jon Favreau’s adaptation of “The Jungle Book” when Bill Murray was cast as Baloo. Despite the fact that Favreau is working on his own adaptation, Andy Serkis is working on his own version of “The Jungle Book” as well. Favreau’s film has already landed an A-List cast and will be released a year before Serkis’ film, but with the addition of fan favorite Benedict Cumberbatch being cast as the voice of Shere Khan, we see that Serkis is going down without a fight.

Jon Favreau has Idris Elba voicing the villainous Shere Khan and Serkis has Benedict Cumberbatch. After all is said and done, who will portray the character best? Will audiences prefer the deep brooding voice of Elba or the intellectually devious voice of Cumberbatch? As much as I love Idris Elba, I’ve heard Benedict Cumberbatch’s voice acting in “The Hobbit” and based off of that performance I would say he has a slight edge and I will emphasize “slight.”

I think both films will end up being successful by drawing in a family audience and appealing to the reminiscent side of younger parents. Favreau is taking a bit more of a risk by mixing animation and live action but a big risk could also mean a big reward. So far both films have received their fair share of buzz and with the continual casting announcements they are both shaping up to be rather interesting.