Idris Elba

Idrissa Akuna Elba OBE, born September 6, 1972, in Hackney, London, to a Sierra Leonean father and a Ghanaian mother, is one of the most magnetic and compelling actors working in British and American film and television, a performer whose deep baritone voice, towering physical presence, and ability to make morally complex antiheroes completely sympathetic have made him a global star across two entirely distinct television universes — the critically adored HBO crime drama The Wire and the BBC detective series Luther — while maintaining a parallel career in Hollywood film. He grew up in Hackney and Canning Town in East London, winning a National Youth Music Theatre place with a Prince's Trust bursary. He worked as an electrician, tire fitter, and meat porter at Smithfield Market while pursuing acting, before relocating to New York City on the NDI visa for actors in 1995. His career-defining role came as Stringer Bell in The Wire (2002-2004) — a calculating, educated drug kingpin attempting to apply business school economics to drug distribution — a performance of extraordinary intelligence and controlled menace that made him one of the most discussed actors on American television. He played DCI John Luther in BBC's Luther (2010-2019), a role earning him the BAFTA Television Award for Best Leading Actor and making him one of the most prominent British actors of his generation. His film career includes Thor (2011 onward), Beasts of No Nation (2015, Golden Globe nomination), The Jungle Book (2016 voice), Molly's Game (2017), The Suicide Squad (2021), and Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022). He is also an internationally respected DJ who performs under the name DJ Big Driis.