Idris Elba Biography

Idrissa Akuna "Idris" Elba (born 6 September 1972) is a British actor, singer, rapper and producer who has starred in both British and American productions. He grew up in Canning Town, East London. He is best known for playing Russell "Stringer" Bell (a Baltimore drug lord and aspiring businessman) in HBO's critically acclaimed show The Wire and the title role of Detective John Luther in Luther, which airs on BBC One. Elba has won a Golden Globe for his portrayal of DCI Luther. One of Elba's first acting roles was in the soap opera Family Affairs. As a film actor, Elba has appeared in American Gangster, Takers, The Losers, Thor, Prometheus and Pacific Rim. In addition to his acting work, Elba is a DJ under the moniker DJ Big Driis/Big Driis the Londoner, and a hip-hop soul recording artist.

Early life

An only child, Elba was born Idrissa Akuna Elba. He shortened his first name at school in Canning Town, where he first became involved in acting. His father, Winston, was a Sierra Leonean and worked at a Ford motor factory, and his mother, Eve, was a Ghanaian and had a clerical job. Elba's parents married in West Africa and later moved to London. Elba himself was raised in East Ham, and began helping an uncle with his wedding-DJ business in 1986 and within a year, he had started his own DJ company with some of his friends. Elba left school in 1988 and later won a place in the National Youth Music Theatre, thanks to a £1,500 Prince's Trust grant, but he ended up having to do everything from tyre-fitting to cold-call advertising sales to pay the rent between roles in Crimewatch murder reconstructions. Elba was working in nightclubs under the DJ nickname Big Driis in 1991, but began auditioning for television parts in his early twenties. After a stint in the National Youth Music Theatre, Elba worked the night shift at Ford Dagenham.

Acting career

Television

Although his film, television, and stage work officially commenced around 1992, in 1995 he landed his first role on a series called Bramwell, a medical drama set in 1890s England. Elba played the lead character in a first-season episode; an African petty thief named Charlie Carter, who lost his white wife to childbirth, then had to figure out how to support his newborn daughter. His first credited role arrived in 1995, with a supporting role as a gigolo on the episode of Absolutely Fabulous, entitled "Sex." Many supporting roles on British television followed, including such series as The Bill and The Ruth Rendell Mysteries. He joined the cast of the soap opera Family Affairs and rose to prominence in the acclaimed serial Ultraviolet. He went on to appear in a more established television series, Dangerfield, in 1999, playing a forensic scientist. He decided to move to New York City soon after. He returned to England occasionally for a job, such as a part in one of the Inspector Lynley Mysteries, a top-rated crime series. In 2001, Elba played Achilles in a stage production of Troilus and Cressida in New York City. After a supporting turn on a 2001 episode of Law & Order, he landed a starring role on a 2002 HBO drama, The Wire. From 2002 to 2004, Elba portrayed Russell "Stringer" Bell in the HBO drama series, perhaps his best known role in the US. In 2005, he portrayed Captain Augustin Muganza in Sometimes in April, an HBO film about the Rwandan Genocide. Elba appeared on the 2007 BET special Black Men: The Truth. Elba appeared in the role of Charlie Gotso in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency opposite Jill Scott and Anika Noni Rose, filmed in Botswana. The series premiered on 23 March 2008, Easter Sunday, on BBC One, receiving a high 6.3 million viewers and 27% of the audience share.

In January 2009, it was reported per Variety that Elba would portray Charles Miner, a new rival to Dunder Mifflin regional manager Michael Scott (Steve Carell) for NBC's The Office. Elba appeared in a six episode story arc later in the 2009 season as well as the season finale. In September 2009, Elba signed a deal to star as the lead role in the 6-part BBC television show Luther, which aired in May 2010. In October 2009, it NBC announced Elba as executive producer of an as yet untitled legal drama. He portrayed Laura Linney's lover on Showtime's The Big C in 2010. At the 69th Golden Globe Awards telecast on 15 January 2012, Elba won the Award for Best Actor in a Series, Mini-Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television for his portrayal of DCI Luther in the BBC Crime-Thriller series Luther.

Film work

In 2006, Elba signed on as the lead of the 2007 film Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls, playing Monty, a blue-collar mechanic who falls in love with a six-figure attorney (Gabrielle Union) helping him gain custody of his kids, and finds the relationship and his custody hopes threatened by the return of his ex-wife. He joined the supporting cast of Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's 28 Weeks Later (2007), the zombie horror sequel to Danny Boyle's 2002 28 Days Later. He filmed This Christmas with Chris Brown, Mekhi Phifer, Loretta Devine and Regina King, that brought in nearly $50 million at the box office in 2007. In 2008, Elba starred in the horror film Prom Night and Guy Ritchie's RocknRolla. In January 2009, Elba starred in horror film The Unborn. He starred in Obsessed, alongside Beyoncé Knowles and Ali Larter, as an asset manager who has a beautiful wife (Knowles) and thriving career until a temp office worker (Larter) begins stalking him. Obsessed was a box office success, taking $29 million in its opening weekend. Obsessed was released on DVD on 4 August 2009.

Elba's next film was Legacy (2010) in which he portrayed a black ops soldier, Malcolm, who returned to Brooklyn after a failed mission in Eastern Europe, where he undertook a journey looking for retribution. He starred in Dark Castle's adaptation of DC/Vertigo's The Losers, under the direction of Sylvain White, in the role of Roque, the second-in-command of a black-ops team out for revenge against a government that did them wrong. Filming took place in Puerto Rico and the movie was released in April 2010. Elba appeared in the 2010 thriller Takers, also starring Hayden Christensen, Chris Brown, T.I., and Paul Walker. He played Heimdall in Kenneth Branagh's 2011 Thor film (based upon the Marvel Comics superhero of the same name). In August 2010, Elba signed up to portray the title character in a reboot of James Patterson's Alex Cross film franchise. However in February 2011 he was replaced by Tyler Perry. Elba appeared in the 2012 sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, alongside Nicolas Cage, with Elba playing an alcoholic warrior monk tasked with finding Ghost Rider. On Wednesday, 22 June 2011, Legendary Pictures announced that Elba had joined Guillermo del Toro's 2013 film, Pacific Rim, in the role of Stacker Pentecost. In February 2012, Elba confirmed the rumours that he would portray former South African President Nelson Mandela in the film based on the autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom. In June 2012, Elba portrayed Captain Janek in Prometheus.

Music career

In 2001, Elba appeared in music videos for Fat Joe, Angie Stone and English rapper Giggs. In 2006, he recorded the four-song EP Big Man for Hevlar Records. He co-produced and performed on the intro to Jay-Z's 2007 album American Gangster. He DJ'd at the 2007 NBA All Star parties at the The Venetian and Ice House Lounge in Las Vegas. Elba appeared in the "Respect My Conglomerate" music video for Busta Rhymes's 2009 Back on My BS album. In July 2009, Elba was the DJ for BET's new series Rising Icons. Elba announced the release of his first single "Please Be True." Elba is currently working on his second EP, and plans to tour Europe in late 2009. In the August 2009 issue of Essence magazine, he announced the name of his six-song EP as Kings Among Kings. He released his EP High Class Problems Vol. 1 in the United Kingdom in February 2010. In 2011, he performed on the intro to Pharoahe Monch's album W.A.R. (We Are Renegades). In 2012 he directed and performed in the Mumford and Sons video Lover of the Light.

Personal life

Elba spends much of his time in London, but also owns a home in Atlanta, so he can be close to his daughter Isan.

In April 2009, the Prince's Trust, which Elba credits with helping to start his career, appointed him its Anti-Crime Ambassador, and in July 2010, he announced his support for Oona King in her campaign to become the Labour Party candidate for Mayor of London in 2012.

Elba is a fan of the Arsenal Football Club that he has supported since he was a teenager.

In the media

Elba was featured as one of the "Ten Hottest Men on the Planet" in the April 2004 issue of Essence magazine and again in the November 2005 issue. He was selected as one of People Magazine's annual 100 Most Beautiful People in the World, in May 2007. Elba appeared on the August 2009 and the November 2011 covers of Essence magazine. He appeared on the August 2010 cover of Ebony magazine.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999	Belle maman	Grégoire
2000	Sorted	Jam
2001	Buffalo Soldiers	Kimborough
2003	One Love	Aaron
2005	'	Charles Frank
2007	Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls	Monty James
2007	'	Ben
2007	28 Weeks Later	General Stone
2007	American Gangster	Tango
2007	This Christmas	Quentin Whitfield
2008	Prom Night	Detective Winn
2008	RocknRolla	Mumbles
2008	'	Larry
2009	'	Arthur Wyndham
2009	Obsessed	Derek Charles
2010	Takers	Gordon Cozier
2010	Legacy	Malcolm Gray
2010	'	Roque
2011	Thor	Heimdall
2012	Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance	Moreau
2012	Prometheus	Captain Janek
2013	Pacific Rim	Stacker Pentecost
2013	Thor: The Dark World	Heimdall	Post-production
2013	Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom	Nelson Mandela	Post-production
2014	No Good Deed		Post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1994	Space Precinct	Sublight Pizza Drug Courier	1 episode "Double Duty"
1995	Absolutely Fabulous	Gigolo	1 episode
1996	Crocodile Shoes II	Jo-Jo	1 episode
1997	Family Affairs	Tim Webster
1997	Silent Witness	Charlie	Episode: "Blood, Sweat & Tears"
1998	Ultraviolet	Vaughan Rice	6 episodes
1999	Dangerfield	Matt Gregory	12 episodes
2000	In Defence	PC Paul Fraser	1 episode
2002	The Inspector	Robert Gabriel	1 episode
2002"2004	'	Russell 'Stringer' Bell	37 episodes
2005	Girlfriends	Paul	Episode "All in a Panic"
2005	Sometimes in April	Augustin Muganza
2008	'	Charles Gotso	1 episode
2009	The Office (U.S. TV series)	Charles Miner	7 episodes
2010	'	Lenny	4 episodes
2011	Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1	Police Officer	1 episode
2010"2013	Luther	DCI John Luther	14 episodes, also producer
2012	Idris Elba's How Clubbing Changed the World	Presenter

Video Games

Year	Title	Voice
2011	Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3	Sergeant First Class 'Truck'

As producer

Year	Title	Notes
2010	Legacy	Executive producer
2010	Walk Like a Panther	TV series; Executive producer
2011"2013	Luther	Producer
2011	How Hip Hop Changed the World	Executive Producer
2011	Demons Never Die	Executive Producer
2012	Lover of the Light, Mumford and Sons	Producer and star (Music Video)

Discography

EP's

• 2006: Big Man
• 2009: Kings Among Kings
• 2010: High Class Problems Vol. 1

Awards and nominations

List of awards and nominations

Year	Nominated work	Award	Result
2005	'	Black Reel Award for Best Actor
2005	Sometimes in April	Black Reel Award for Best Actor: T.V. Movie/Cable
2005	Sometimes in April	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special
2007	Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls	BET Award for Actors of the Year
2007	American Gangster	Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2008		BET Award for Best Actor
2009		BET Award for Best Actor
2009	Obsessed	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
2010		BET Award for Best Actor
2010	Takers	Black Reel Award for Best Ensemble
2010	Luther	Golden Globe Award for Best Actor " Miniseries or Television Film
2011	Takers	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture
2011		BET Award for Best Actor
2011	Luther	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special
2011	'	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
2011	Luther	Golden Globe Award for Best Actor " Miniseries or Television Film
2011	Luther	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
2011	Luther	Satellite Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or Television Film
2012	Luther	Black Reel Award for Best Actor: T.V. Movie/Cable
2012	Luther	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
2012		BET Award for Best Actor