Benedict Cumberbatch Fights off Four Muggers During Scary Incident

Benedict Cumberbatch jumped out of his cab to help a cyclist fight off four muggers in London this week, right near one of his character's fictional homes.

Cumberbatch and his wife, Sophie, were reportedly in a cab in central London when they witnessed the attack. According to Sky News, the 41-year-old actor saw a food delivery person on a bicycle surrounded by four muggers. They hit the cyclist over the head with the bottle, and Cumberbatch jumped into action.

Witnesses said that Cumberbatch yelled "leave him alone" as he ran towards the altercation. He pulled one of the assailants off of the delivery man, and when they tried to punch Cumberbatch he was able to fight them off. All four attackers eventually fled. The cyclist was spared serious injury thanks to Cumberbatch's intervention.

The strangest part was that the whole thing reportedly took place on Marlyebone High Street, very close to Baker Street. Baker Street in London is the fictional home of Sherlock Holmes, the tortured genius detective who Cumberbatch plays on TV in BBC's Sherlock. Cumberbatch assumed the role in 2010, and it helped propel him to international stardom.

Cumberbatch spoke to reporters from The Sun shortly after the street-side brawl.

"I did it out of, well, I had to, you know," he said simply. His driver, Manuel Dias, praised the celebrity's quick thinking.

"Benedict was courageous, brave and selfless," he said. "If he hadn't stepped in, the cyclist could have been seriously injured. Here was Sherlock Holmes fighting off four attackers just round the corner from Baker Street. He stood there instructing them in the street, shouting, 'Leave him alone.' I had hold of one lad and Benedict another. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing. He was very brave. He did most of it, to be honest."

The story went viral on Twitter, where Cumberbatch's fans praised him for taking his heroic roles into the real world.

"Can you imagine you're away on your bicycle to deliver a Chinese takeaway to someone and four boys attack you and hit you with a bottle and then you hear someone yell LEAVE HIM ALONE and you look up and Benedict Cumberbatch has come to your rescue?" pondered one user.

This man is genuinely too good to be true.

— rio (@thescientist291) June 1, 2018

"This man is genuinely too good to be true," responded another.

These days, Cumberbatch has moved out of the realm of TV mysteries and into major box office films. He played a pivotal role in Marvel's recent Infinity War crossover as Doctor Strange. Later this year, he'll star in a live-action adaptation of The Jungle Book as the villainous tiger Shere Khan.