Idris Elba tribute off the mark, doll
Expensive and handcrafted but critics say it looks nothing like ‘sexiest man alive’
AN Idris Elba doll handcrafted by a British manufacturer has been mocked on social media after fans said it looked nothing like the actor.
Dressed in a suave suit, the £850 (R16 000) muscular plastic tribute almost captures the essence of the British actor – but the doll’s “evil” eyes and bald head have left many questioning what specialist doll makers Emperis, were thinking.
Elba was recently voted People Magazine’s “sexiest man alive”, but fans were not convinced the doll, sold through Emperis’s online store, really resembled the hunk from London.
Stunned Twitter users said they believed the creation looked more like American actor and Weeds star Romany Malco.
Others said the attempt at mirroring the actor, 46, was as bad as the infamous Cristiano Ronaldo statue
– the bust at Madeira
Airport ridiculed for being nothing like the footballer.
Some said the doll should be altered after a woman spotted it on the shop’s site and posted an image to Twitter.
Tana Hargest said: “This is supposed to be an Idris Elba doll.
“Instead, it looks like Ming the Merciless, aka Blax von Sydow.” Another said: “Wait, that was supposed to be Idris Elba? somebody needs to fix that.”
A woman named Court was among the first to spot the doll. Her tweet was liked thousands of times.
She wrote: “This doll is supposed to be Idris? Somebody getting fired.” Another user added: “Somebody made a Montel Williams doll and trying to pawn it off as Idris Elba.”
Emperis has also made models of stars such as Cher and Freddie Mercury.
The company said only two Idris dolls remain with the rest of the stock sold already.
Representatives for Idris Elba have been asked to comment, although it is not yet clear whether he has seen the doll made in tribute to him.
Emperis was established in 2010 and is marketed as the firm behind the “only handcrafted ball joined doll that is not only designed but also made in England”.
The firm says online: “We have been making handcrafted fine art and fashion dolls since 2010. This has allowed us to turn our passion into a business but also transformed it into a special kind of art form.
“Sculpting skills and fashion design have given us an independence to express our sense of fashion and style, making us truly a powerhouse in the doll world.”
Elba has been tipped for a while to become the next James Bond.
The actor has yet to speak out on the rumours but teased fans when he performed a DJ set in London at Elrow, when he appeared on the stage playing the 007 theme tune.
Elba is not the first victim of the dubious trend of creating dolls in the image of celebrities.
Others who have had their images massacred include Emma Watson’s doll that looked more like the Queen of Hearts than Belle in Beauty and the Beast, and John Travolta’s doll could bend and twist at the waist.
However, it looked like Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi.
Robert Pattinson’s doll looked like a cross between a vampire and Derek Zoolander.