Idris Elba appears to have finally put the endless speculation about his future being with James Bond to rest in his new film Luther: The Fallen Sun – even rejecting the offer of a martini in one scene, which he acknowledges was tipping the wink to knowing fans.
He told the UK’s Guardian newspaper this weekend that he remains extremely close to Bond’s producers, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson, but dismissed the idea of them ever offering him the role:
“I can’t speak for them, but from my perspective, there’s never been any sort of truth to any of it. It’s a compliment and it’s an honour, but it’s not a truth.”
Luther: The Fallen Sun has debuted in UK cinemas ahead of a global roll-out on Netflix on March 10, and it appears to be the answer to anybody wondering if Elba needs Bond – it’s a sound ‘No,’ with the arrival of his own very British down-to-earth superhero in a tweed coat, DCI John Luther – there to ruffle the collars of his superiors, go about fighting crime his own way, and ultimately to protect the masses.
Elba first played the maverick London policeman in 2010. There have now been five series on the BBC, but Elba and Luther’s writer Neil Cross have long made it clear they wanted Luther to land on the big screen. The film is bigger, more ambitious and clearly more expensive than the TV version. Elba says Luther is comparable with James Bond, Jason Bourne and Ethan Hunt of Mission: Impossible:
“These are solitary figures that go off and have conviction and style and grace, take out the bad guy. But I think with John there’s a sort of grounded relatability. That’s the space where I think I can take this franchise further and deeper.”
As well as his acting, Elba has added to his already plentiful sidelines in recent years. He DJs around the world, co-hosts a podcast with his wife Sabrina Dhowre, and is a UN goodwill ambassador.
And now he has successfully kicked off his own big screen action franchise – meaning the speculation about who will replace Daniel Craig as James Bond will continue to land on likely names, but finally not that of Idris Elba.