Mokhzani is a director of SunnyMarch Holdings, which Cumberbatch set up in 2014, and has invested £1 million (RM5.37 million) in return for shares via his company, Kencana Capital.

SunnyMarch is behind a number of film projects, including BBC’s The Child In Time, and Sky’s Patrick Melrose, both of which starred Cumberbatch.

“I was shocked and disappointed to learn today of statements made by Dr Mahathir Mohamad articulating views that I find abhorrent and unacceptable,” the star of Sherlock told Britain’s MailOnline yesterday.

“Our company has never had dealings with Dr Mahathir. Rather, our relationship has always been with his son, Mokhzani.

“As a company, we have already begun the process of fully severing our relationship with Mokhzani so that he will no longer be involved with SunnyMarch.”

MailOnline said Mahathir had called Jews “hook-nosed” and questioned whether six million had been killed in the Holocaust, claiming it was actually four million.

In another recent interview, Mahathir was also reported to have said: “Anti-Semitic is a term that is invented to prevent people from criticising the Jews for doing wrong things.”

However, the prime minister has since said Malaysia is neither anti-Jew nor anti-Semitic.

“Malaysia is not anti-Jew or anti-Semitic. The Arabs are also Semitic people. But we reserve the right to condemn inhuman and oppressive behaviour anywhere, by anyone,” he said in a blog post.