Benedict Cumberbatch & Olivia Colman Joke About ‘Disastrous’ Time on ‘The Roses’ (Exclusive)

Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch chatted with “Extra” about “The Roses," their new satirical black comedy based on the 1981 novel “The War of the Roses.” 

Olivia and Benedict, who are longtime friends, shared that it was a dream to finally get to work together. 

Benedict joked, "It was disasterous... it was unpleasant," while Olivia teased, "We had to enter on separate sides of the stage."

On a more serious note, Cumberbatch shared, “It's a dream when you get to work with Olivia… She really does brighten the day.”

Olivia gushed, “We had a lovely time,” joking, “We hold hands and skip into work every day.”

They also dished on their characters Theo and Ivy, whose marital problems play out in a very comical way in the movie.

“They do genuinely love each other all the way through, but they forget to check in with each other,” Olivia said.

Benedict added, “That conversation between the couple kind of dries because of this stubbornness. I guess they both have an amazing amount of assertive brilliance and surety, which I think is their strength… and when it's in opposition, it's also pretty amazing, but in the wrong way.”

He put it this way: “What joins them becomes their sort of toxicity, which is their wit, their humor, and then they sort of turn the guns on each other.”

Olivia talked about getting to show off her shooting skills (through she confessed it was all pretend), admitting what her favorite part of the shoot was. 

“Chasing you around the house with the gun, I really did enjoy that,” she said, “because Ben is so fit and healthy and enthusiastic… hurling himself around the place, which I found hilarious.”