Netflix Spoiler: Guess Which Major Actor Is Under the Mask for His New Show

New York City residents have been treated to an unusual sight over the past few months. The upcoming Netflix limited series Eric has been filming around the Big Apple, and one of the major costumes/props is a furry grey-and-blue mascot suit. And who’s inside this hairy, yeti-like creature costume? It is none over than A-list actor Benedict Cumberbatch.

Cumberbatch is the star of Eric, which per its official synopsis is “a new emotional thriller from Abi Morgan following the desperate search of a father when his nine-year-old son disappears one morning on the way to school.” If you’re wondering was the deal with the costume is, it ties into Cumberbatch’s character’s line of work — as well as his idea to help bring his son home.

“Vincent, one of New York’s leading puppeteers and creator of the hugely popular children’s television show, ‘Good Day Sunshine,’ struggles to cope with the loss of his son, Edgar, becoming increasingly distressed and volatile,” the synopsis reads.”Full of self-loathing and guilt around Edgar’s disappearance, he clings to his son’s drawings of a blue monster puppet, ERIC, convinced that if he can get ERIC on TV then Edgar will come home. As Vincent’s progressively destructive behaviour alienates his family, his work colleagues, and the detectives trying to help him, it’s Eric, a delusion of necessity, who becomes his only ally in the pursuit to bring his son home.”

So it appears at some point in the 1980s-set show, Cumberbatch’s character embodies Eric in one of his attempts to track his kid down. The star, known for Doctor Strange and Sherlock, has been seen in several locales in NYC the past few weeks, including Central Park. Previous sequences in the movie were shot in Hungary.

A release date for the six-episode show has yet to be set by Netflix. Additional cast members include Gaby Hoffmann, McKinley Belcher III, Dan Fogler, Clarke Peters, Ivan Howe, Phoebe Nicholls, David Denman, Bamar Kane, Adepero Oduye, Alexis Molnar and Roberta Colindrez. Lucy Forbes will direct Eric.