Benedict Cumberbatch launches Save The Children campaign

Benedict Cumberbatch has launched a new charity initiative between Save The Children and Marvel.

The ‘Doctor Strange’ star featured in a video posted on YouTube by Marvel Entertainment, in which he announced plans for an initiative called Marvel Studios: Hero Acts.

The initiative calls for Marvel Universe fans to upload a picture of themselves dressed up as a Marvel character to MarvelStudiosHeroActs.com, and for every picture posted on the site the studio will donate $5 (up to a total of $1 million) to the Save The Children charity.

In the video, the 40-year-old actor says: "I’m very excited to announce today a new charitable initiative that enables us to do even more together. Marvel Studios: Hero Acts is a global initiative focused on bringing help and hope to kids around the world when they need it most."

And Benedict – who has young son Christopher with his wife Sophie Hunter – also details how he has seen the children that Save The Children aim to help, saying that "no-one should ever have to face" what they go through.

He said: "We filmed ‘Doctor Strange’ in Nepal and several other countries and everywhere we went in the world, I met Marvel fans. But I also saw kids who are facing enormous challenges, challenges that no one should ever have to face. With the help of our fans, Hero Acts can change that."

Benedict then went on to detail how fans can get involved with the project, insisting that fans share their post on social media with the hashtags "#heroacts" and "#marvelstudios", in order to spread awareness for the cause.

He said: "To help us launch hero acts, post a photo of yourself in your favorite Marvel hero pose. Just go to MarvelStudiosHeroActs.com, upload your photo and share on your social media channels with the below hashtags."

‘Marvel Studios: Hero Acts’ will run until the end of the year.