HE SPEAKS, HE SINGS, HE SMOULDERS
The elusive Idris Elba talks to LS about Paris, stunts, ‘spinging’ and the power of Stringer Bell
Idris Elba storms the barricades of action drama in Bastille Day
I’m like, ’Babe, those guys over there are going to jump us’
IDRIS Elba is currently tearing up cinema screens as an action hero in Bastille Day, directed by James Watkins. Elba plays Sean Briar, an American CIA agent who joins forces with a young pickpocket (Richard Madden) in pursuit of terrorists in Paris.
Filmmakers have no control over what happens in the real world, and we shouldn’t veer away from making subjects close to what happens in the real world. But the film has no real correlation with the Paris attacks. It just happens to be Paris. This script is four years old and we shot it almost two years ago. Also the plot red-herrings the audience. You walk into what you think might be a film about terrorists and then it takes you on a different journey, where it’s good over evil. It’s just a real, grounded approach to a buddy action flick.
The Paris attacks broke our hearts. We had just been there, in a city that we loved. They had embraced us as filmmakers and now this was happening to them — it was heartbreaking.
We were in training for six weeks prior to filming. James wanted to make a homage to the ’70s action films, where there was less green screen and more actuality. He wanted to step away from CGI and see us doing our own stunts. I did a lot of fighting. I like to fight. I also have a bit of a martial arts background. So I got AUX ARMES: Idris Elba as CIA agent Sean Briar in ’Bastille Day’ completely involved. I watched Lee Marvin in Point Blank and tried to bring that stoicism and energy to my character.
There are a lot of really good British actors. There are a lot of good Australian actors, a lot of good American actors . . . I think it’s just a good time for good actors. If you’re dedicated to your profession, then it’s a good time for you wherever you’re from.
My American accent is an evolving muscle. It doesn’t always stay perfect if you don’t use it. For this film, I went for an accent that was flat. I tried to think about the civil servant side and the history of being in the army, which tends to flatten out American accents . . . that’s what I went for.
Yes, that’s me “spinging” at the end. Spinging is speaksinging. It’s a new song — a new spingle, spung by myself. I was a producer on certain aspects of this film, and the soundtrack was important to James. I went to Fat Boy Slim, who has a real love for film, and he and I wanted to work together. I said, “Here’s an opportunity to make something interesting”. He encouraged me to “sping” on it. It’s a cool word.
Being the voice of Shere Khan [in Jon Favreau’s remake of The
Jungle Book] was great. You can be very influential as a voice. Animators live and die by the expression to your voice. They film you and see how your face moves. Shere Khan and I don’t look alike at all, but they mirror what my mouth might be doing, where my eyes might be and so on.
Stringer Bell [in David Simon’s 2002-2008 TV series
The Wire] was a massive changing point in my life. I’d been in the acting game for 10 years, and then I was in New York and hadn’t worked as an actor for four years, and then suddenly Stringer Bell landed in my lap and it changed my life.
The Wire wasn’t the most popular show at the time of its airing. In America, we were dwarfed by The Sopranos. But the global fan base has just grown continuously. I was in Romania with my girlfriend, hanging out, and we’re sitting at this café. And there are 10 lads at the other table and they look like the Gypsy Kings — scary looking. I’m like, “Babe, we’re in Romania and those guys over there are going to jump us”. She’s like, “You idiot. They’re not going to jump us. Don’t be fucking stupid”. Then when this guy stood up, I grabbed a bottle. And he went: “Stringer Bell! Stringer Bell! Take a picture! I told you it’s Stringer Bell!” And I put the bottle down.