The first pics of Benedict Cumberbatch as Hamlet are here, and we’re swooning

If there’s one thing the Internet loves as much as kitten videos, it’s Benedict Cumberbatch. He’s our favorite British crush. I kind of see him as the literary girl’s ideal man. I mean, he’s done Sherlock Holmes and even Mr. Darcy (sort of). So now (obvs) he’s tackling Shakespeare. Seriously, could he be any more British? Oh, be still my Anglophile heart!

Benedict Cumberbatch (when talking about him, you must always use his full name because of the delightful way it rolls off the tongue) is starring in the stage production of Hamlet, which opened on Wednesday night at the Barbican Theatre in London. The show has broken records for the fastest-selling ticket in London theatre history, probably because (hello!) it stars Benedict Cumberbatch. Advance tickets sold out waaaay back last year, but the theater held onto 30 “last minute” tickets for each performance that go on sale the morning of the show, and people are lining up hours and hours in advance just to get them. Some people have been lining up for as many as 20 hours, which adds up to half a work week. Again, we’re talking about Benedict Cumberbatch here. In Shakespeare.

For those of us not lucky enough to get tickets and jet over to London (sob), the Barbican just released the first official photos of Benedict Cumberbatch as the tortured Danish prince. And we (along with the rest of the Internet) are crushing hard. It seems the play has a modern twist, which is pretty intriguing. And a lot awesome.

Because if anyone can pull off Hamlet in a hoodie, it’s Benedict Cumberbatch (again, note use of full name):

Here he pairs a plain grey t-shirt under a jacket with the tiniest bit of Shakespearean flair. It’s like lululemon dressed Hamlet. Nice.

A fencing outfit on top and jeans on the bottom? He totally pulls that off too.

Here he is as Hamlet, neck-deep in existential crisis. To be or not to be? Be, Benedict Cumberbatch. Please be.

I think it’s only proper to close with the most swoon-worthy quote from Hamlet: “Doubt thou the stars are fire, doubt that the sun doth move, doubt truth to be a liar, but never doubt I love.”

Never doubt our love, Benedict Cumberbatch. Never.

(Images via Twitter.)