50? I can’t even say it
IDRIS ELBA ON HIS BIG BIRTHDAY Plan to chill on big day
by
AS a cool screen tough guy Idris Elba has faced some of the worst things that life can throw at you.
He’s been on both sides of the law – as a hard-bitten detective in the award-winning series Luther and as ruthless drugs kingpin Stringer Bell in The Wire.
In his new film, Beast, he plays Nate Samuels who has to fight for survival when he and his teenage daughters are stalked by a vicious lion.
So it is surprising to discover that the heartthrob actor, often named as the possible next James Bond, gets shaken and stirred by his age.
Last year Sabrina Dhowre Elba, his wife of three years, threw Idris a massive party to mark him turning 49.
But the notorious party animal’s birthday on Tuesday will be a very different affair.
He said: “I cannot even say the word 50. It is like what? I am old. That is me – on my way. I feel 50. I wake up in the morning and I’m aching.
Incredible and
“The last few years I have realised how precious life is – so
I just want to live. I do a lot of partying, so maybe I will chill. Is that boring?”
If his celebration proves a little low key, the same is certainly not true of his career.
Idris, also a DJ, music producer podcast host, winemaker and bar owner, plans to add yet another string to his bow.
The East London-born actor, awarded an OBE in 2016 for services to drama, has set his sights on directing as well as starring in films and making more albums.
He feels music allows him to speak his truth without fear of being cancelled. “I love acting but I feel there is a lot more to offer as a director, writer and producer,” Idris said.
“I have tried not to repeat myself as an actor. There is only one Luther, Stringer Bell character.
“There are characters and roles I still want to do but the truth is that I’d like to do them maybe as a film director and actor.
“There are incredible people like Denzel Washington and Jon Favreau, who have acted and directed them
selves in movies. That is a natural progression.”
Idris, whose Hollywood hits include playing Nelson Mandela in Long Walk to Freedom and voicing Shere Khan in 2016’s version of The Jungle Book, hopes to team up with Leonardo Dicaprio.
“I’d love to work with Leo,” he said. “I met him at a party recently and we talked for hours. I will try and make that happen. Leo is a very humble guy.
“When you see the spectrum of work he has done, it is incredible. It is very impressive.”
Idris had been a frontrunner to replace Daniel Craig as the next 007, but last month reports suggested he has ruled himself out.
Instead he wants to pursue his own franchise and was keen to talk about the upcoming film version of Luther, calling it his James Bond series.
“It’s incredible, it is like graduating,” he said. “The television show ran a natural course over five seasons. Each one of them shape shifted, but kept an audience captivated for 10 years.
“The graduation point is where we get to take that Luther character, elevate it on to the big screen with a slightly wider spectrum of scale and stories you can tell.
“It will take it international in terms of who Luther is. It is a huge achievement for all that have written it.
Passion
“I am happy I saw the film; and if you have never seen an episode of Luther you can still be invited to the first chapter of the film series.
“I am hoping that this movie becomes my Bond.
“Everyone talks about Bond, but for me it is Luther.” Mixing up his acting with a DJ residency in Ibiza, Idris said people are often shocked by how much he works.
He said: “It probably looks more insane than it is, but my manager Katie would say, ‘You’re not human. How do you split yourself up?’ I’m not going to lie, I’m a workaholic. I love working.
“I’m really fortunate that my day job allows me to do big films and do car commercials and whatever, but at the same time, my passion in life is music and Djing, I work hard at it. “I don’t slack. Here’s the thing, to get credibility, you have to put the hours in, especially if people know you for one thing.” And when he’s not working, he’s enjoying his downtime with Sabrina, 33.
They work together on podcast Coupledom and skincare range Sable.
Idris, who has been married twice before, said: “She is the best thing ever to happen. We are very much in love.”
The star – who has daughter Isan, 20, with ex-wife Kim Nørgaard, and eight-year-old Winston with former girlfriend Naiyana Garth – said lockdown life brought them even closer.
“The pandemic found Sabrina and I, like most people, locked into a space,” he said. “Quickly you saw more than you would usually see because you are together 12 or 15 hours a day.
“It was a real learning experience but it cemented our relationship.”
He added: “We are good to spend time apart and also good being together in silence.
“She is a very kind person and opened up.
“Marriage is awesome. But you have to work at marriages.
“Hopefully I have found a partnership that works and we work at it.”
janine.yaqoob@people.co.uk