The news hit like a bat out of hell on the Internet yesterday that Benedict Cumberbatch was close to inking a deal to play a baddie in Episode VII.

Everyone from i09 to Huffington Post and right on down the line has reported it as though it could be a distinct possibility.

But I don’t buy it.

We had a lengthy discussion about it on the most recent Rumour Control episode of Full of Sith with Bobby Roberts, which you can listen to below, or visit the website

The situation is basically this: last week the news of Cumberbatch and a number of other names was leaked (including Billy Dee Williams and Ben Kingsley) as the people who were this close to signing. It landed in the laps of a lot of major news and film blogs with the caveat that Lucasfilm would be making an announcement soon. That announcement never came and everyone pretty much realized that what they were hearing was bunk.

I heard the same thing about it being bunk from a number of places, and we discussed this on Full of Sith, which we recorded on Saturday night, debunking it before the rumour even picked up any heat until yesterday.

I’m just saying, it’s probably not going to happen.

Could they still get into negotiations with him? Anything is possible, but at this point, this one is debunked as far as I’m concerned.

UPDATE: Cumberbatch’s agent tells the New York Daily News that the rumours are bunk, too: