If you’ve spent a lot of time on set, seeing how Hollywood movies are made, you’ll notice that the most efficient ones waste the least amount.

Whether that’s time, money, or resources, you want your sets to click into gear and to make things easier on everyone involved.

You don’t have to take my word for that; you just have to listen to acclaimed actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who pulled back the curtain on a less-than-glamorous aspect of Hollywood, labeling the film industry as “grossly wasteful.”

Let’s dive in.

Cumberbatch, in an appearance on the Ruthie’s Table 4 podcast, pointed to several key areas where he believes significant improvements can be made so that Hollywood productions aren’t steeped in excess.

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Food Waste

One of the most interesting examples he provided was the extreme diet he had to follow to achieve the superhero physique for his Marvel role.

The guy had to eat around five meals a day, plus snacks, to make him able to maintain his muscle and body.

“The exercise is great, and the end result is that you feel strong and you feel confident. You hold yourself better. You have a stamina through the exercise and the food that makes you last through the gig. But it is horrific,” he said. “I don’t like it personally. I think it’s horrific, eating beyond your appetite.”

Cumberbatch added to the discussion that, “Going back to responsibility and resourcefulness and sustainability, it’s just like, what am I doing? I could feed a family with the amount I’m eating.”

And that’s probably true. His need to eat thousands of calories by consuming a giant amount of food, all in the name of a role, really freaked him out.

Discarding Sets

Beyond the craft services table, Cumberbatch also took aim at the broader environmental impact of filmmaking. He spoke of the sets that are constructed for a film and then often discarded rather than recycled.

“Think about set builds that aren’t recycled, think about transport, think about food, think about housing, but also light and energy. The amount of wattage you need to create daylight and consistent light in a studio environment. It’s a lot of energy,” the actor said.

This is all true, but my only argument would be that these giant sets also employ a lot of people and make their lives better via having jobs, and that’s sort of the trade-off.

We probably should find a way to better recycle sets and materials. I actually don’t know any facts in those areas. I’d love someone to do an actual deep dive on the footprint of a lot of these movies.

The Challenge of Hypocrisy

The actor also acknowledged the precarious position that high-profile individuals are in when they speak out on environmental issues. He noted that actors are often the first to be criticized for hypocrisy, given the often-lavish lifestyles associated with their profession.

But I do admire him for trying to be part of the solution.

As a producer, he is committed to pushing for greener initiatives on set. He advocates for simple yet impactful changes, such as eliminating single-use plastic water bottles.

Like I said earlier, it would be cool to have a study done on these movies to see where excess actually exists and how to combat that. I’d love to get a rundown on what cheap changes film and TV can make to ensure greener initiatives.

Do you have any experience with that?

Let me know what you think in the comments.