Idris Elba, from fighting the “Beast” to being the favorite to play James Bond
Idris Elba, one of the most beloved actors of the British public and a favorite to lead the new stage of the James Bond franchise, is determined to bring to the cinema “easily identifiable characters” as the protagonist of Beastpremiered Thursday in Argentina.
“I just want to create characters that are easy to identify with, even if they have supernatural powers or are not nice,” the actor told EFE news agency in a telephone interview from London.
Directed by the Icelandic Baltasar Kormákur (Everest), Beast recreates the struggle for survival of a family who, during a journey through the African savannah, is attacked by a lion who sees all human beings as a lethal threat due to poaching.
Elba, arriving at the premiere of “Once Upon a Time There Was a Genius”, George Miller’s new film, at the Cannes Film Festival last May. AFP photo
“It’s kind of nostalgic, it’s old school in its simplicity. A ‘thriller’ designed to put you on the edge of your seat, which is also an old-fashioned term, but that’s what we do in this film,” he explains.
The actor, who many will recognize as Heimdall at the factory wonder and Bloodsport in the movies DC Comicsgives birth to a father who, after the recent death of his ex-wife, goes to South Africa, the country where he met her, with his two daughters (Iyana Halley and Leah Jeffries).
In “Beast” he composes a doctor who travels with his daughters to South Africa and meets the lion.
There, an outing led by an old family friend (Sharlto Copley) turns into a nightmare when they discover that a city has been completely razed by an unknown threat. Later, father and daughters will meet an imposing lion who, after seeing how poachers annihilate his habitat, is thirsting for revenge against all humans he finds.
“The fight really isn’t between a lion and a man. It’s about pain, fear and family. What would you do for your family? How do you fight for it? In this film, the fight isn’t just physical, it’s mind”, explains the actor.
The English Idris Elba, his wife the actress Sabrina Dhowre, Heather Packer and her husband the producer Will Packer at the premiere of “Beast”. AFP photo
Elba is convinced that beyond the impact of the scenes, the audience will be able to identify with the background of the plot: “A father who maintains a complicated relationship with his children”. “Especially if you get attacked by the king of the jungle,” he jokes.
Favorite to be 007?
Elba’s ability to bear the weight of action and its innate elegance (in 2018 the magazine People named him the sexiest man on the planet) brought this 49-year-old London actor out into the open in all conversations to see who will take Daniel Craig’s place as the new Agent 007.
But the actor avoids talking about the subject. “I have had a long career, I have played many different roles and my signature, thanks to which people recognize me, is that the audience can identify with my characters and their decisions,” says the Brit.
Together with Tilda Swinton, in Cannes. “Once Upon a Time There Was a Genius” opens August 26 in the United States. AFP photo
For weeks now, his name has appeared for the first time in bookmakers where you can play and predict the new face of the legendary spy franchise.
Only Henry Cavill and Tom Hardy overshadow this, but in his favor is the fact that Elba would be the first black James Bond at a time when Hollywood is dedicated to expanding the diversity between its franchises and most famous characters.
Furthermore, the producer of the James Bond universe, Barbara Broccoli, has already anticipated that they are “reinventing” what it means to be Agent 007. But Elba, for now, is silent.
Source: EFE Agency
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Source: Clarin