Idris Elba Is Done Talking About What Black Actors Can’t Do In Hollywood

June 4th, 2012 - By Brande Victorian

Source: Vulture.com

You can almost already foresee the Oscar that Idris Elba will someday bring home as the British actor continues to gain notoriety in Hollywood and increasingly stellar roles. Though he;’ enjoying a very successful career run, Idris isn’t oblivious to the barriers of being a black man trying to make it as a thespian, the thing is he just has no interest in talking about it all day.

In an interview with Vulture.com, Idris was asked why he thinks he’s had a slow rise to fame, to which he answered the fact that he’s British and there are already more than enough leading men to go around. But when the reporter asked if whether he thought being black had anything to do with it, he quickly shut him down and said “next question.”

“I’m so bored of answering that,” he added. “Are there differences between black actors’ opportunities and white actors’ opportunities? Yes, there are. It’s been said. I’d rather a young black actor read about success as opposed to how tough it was. I get these roles because I can act and that’s it. Hopefully that’s it. The less I talk about being black, the better.”

Good point. It seems Idris had enough of the “woe is me talk” from a very early age, opting to actually do something about it instead. During the interview he talked about his childhood and the extremist right-wing party, The National Front, saying “Their beliefs are ‘Keep Britain White” and added:

“Walking down the street, someone would call you a black c*nt. I was like, ‘F*** that.’ ”

According to the article, it was around this time that Idris decided to shorten his given name, Idrissa, which means “firstborn son,” because he got tired of beating people up when they told him it sounded too feminine.

“I quickly got well known because I was tall and wasn’t taking any s***.”

He forgot to mention fine, although like the subject of how hard it is for black actors in Hollywood, he’s not too keen on spending a lot of time talking about his looks either. When Vulture asked if he’s ever worried about damaging that face we’ve come to love when he takes on action roles like Prometheus and Thor, he said:

“If I made my living off my face alone, I don’t think I’d be here talking to you now. I don’t have much to lose. Besides, there are characters out there that have crooked noses. I think I’ll get those characters.”

I’m pretty sure he will too, although he insists he’s still relatively unknown in the industry.

“My publicist says a lot of the time people don’t get it. They’re like, ‘Ee-dris Elba?’ And she’s like, ‘The guy from The Wire.’ I don’t see myself as ­famous. I’m more, ‘What’s his name again?’ And I love that.”

What do you think about Idris’s comments? Is he right that the less he talks about being black, the better off he is?

Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.

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  • http://www.facebook.com/ftalker Frank Talker

    The question has no meaning since it is impossible to quantify how much one should talk about any subject.
    The only issue is whether one should talk about a subject at all, and the answer here is clearly yes because skin color is of such importance to Whites and they have the most jobs to offer.

  • A.J.

    Okay. I understand what he’s saying, and to a certain degree, I agree with it. One should not allow the color of their skin (or their weight, physical appearance, etc.) to limit their talents, nor should they harp on the limitations that these things may cause them. However, not talking about an issue, or downplaying its seriousness, doesn’t just make it go away. I feel that one should be able to proudly display their Blackness (or negritude, whatever you want to call it) AND be able to get the roles that they want. Something is seriously wrong if success (or minor notoriety) depends on one downplaying who one is. No one is denying that he has acting skills, but what about the other talented Black actors who haven’t made it yet, the ones who don’t harp on hardships all the time?

  • Lane

    I don’t know if he should or should not talk about being a black actor but I did notice the other day while watching Entertainment Tonight covering a premiere of the movie Prometheus they only mentioned 4 white actors. Mr. Elba’s name was never mentioned. I didn’t even know he was in the movie. Now I’m going to go look it up and I might go see it depending on the size of his roll. Unless it is Denzel or Will Smith most of the white entertainment media will not mention black actors such as Mr. Elba when discussing a film premiere. I didn’t realize he was in Thor until I was sitting in the theater watching the movie with my son.

    • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=536872959 Aaron T. Starks

      Well, he isn’t top-billed. Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender and the other male lead (his name escapes me) are all billed above and the actual stars of the movie. He’s second billed (he’s the captain of the Prometheus) and often gets mentioned but just probably not in the segment you saw.

  • Msmykimoto2u

    I love that he doesnt dwell on the fact that he is a “black actor” in the industry, he is just an actor. But I dont want him to settle with being kind of known, he should reach for being well known an dont stop until he gets that Oscar.

  • NegRican24

    I don’t care about his comments unless he is speaking sweet nothings softly in my ear as he folds me in his strong embrace. Lol, unless he s reading this then i say hey suga shoot me an email at Morenqua@hotmail.com. I know wishful thinking at it’s srongest

  • Treacle234

    Give it a rest already.

  • Maggie

    I disagree with a lot of people of acknowledging blackness. It is a must that we acknowledge blackness AND dictate the content of the conversation by mentioning success. Why? b/c most people whether black or not and especially black children think that success comes from not being black or having some special opportunity that has removed you from black culture.

  • Gimmeabreak78

    I love his point. Too often black people of all professions spend to long harping on the hardship of being black in a white-dominated world. That’s pretty much a waste of time when you can spend that energy doing what you know you have to do (i.e. being good at what you do, even if it means being twice as good as “other people”).

  • changeyourmindset

    When we stop focusing on limitations of having a black skin, we will be able to focus on the uniqueness of having a black skin and intelligence/talent/success is not wrapped in skin color. We will also move two steps ahead. If I had focused on that, I will not be where I am today. A little girl who grew up in the bad side of Los Angeles, got a full scholarship to an ivy league university and now in my third year of medical school. Let’s stop talking, let’s take action. God bless.

    • micmcna1

      Interesting where you are going with it, but I have to agree with Maggie. We have yet to find a happy medium where we don’t focus on being black but aren’t the “yeah, I’m black. So what?” genre of peoples. We have to realize that EVERY aspect of a person including their race, complexion ethnicity or whatever you want to call it effects us in this life and can have an effect on our success. We can’t let it dictate us but we shouldn’t ignore it either because then it actually sets us back more than we think it propels us forward. Ignoring anything and saying that it doesn’t make us who we are can become more of a problem than a positive even if we don’t want make it such because others WILL make it such. And since none of us are islands we should be able to deal with it in an intelligent way rather than to say it has no effect on us. The problem changeyourmindset, is that more so than often when we don’t focus on the skin color’s limitations we do not acknowledge the uniqueness/ talent/ wrapped in it either.

    • micmcna1

      Interesting where you are going with it, but I have to agree with Maggie. We have yet to find a happy medium where we don’t focus on being black but aren’t the “yeah, I’m black. So what?” genre of peoples. We have to realize that EVERY aspect of a person including their race, complexion ethnicity or whatever you want to call it effects us in this life and can have an effect on our success. We can’t let it dictate us but we shouldn’t ignore it either because then it actually sets us back more than we think it propels us forward. Ignoring anything and saying that it doesn’t make us who we are can become more of a problem than a positive even if we don’t want make it such because others WILL make it such. And since none of us are islands we should be able to deal with it in an intelligent way rather than to say it has no effect on us. The problem changeyourmindset, is that more so than often when we don’t focus on the skin color’s limitations we do not acknowledge the uniqueness/ talent/ wrapped in it either.

      • changeyourmindset

        I disagree. Keep in mind, I said stop focusing on limitations, not ignore your blackness. The reality is, it’s impossible to ignore my skin color or who I am as a person. However, I don’t need to be reminded all the time about the struggles of being black, I see it everyday. What I want to hear is, how to move forward from here, how do I deal with it and how far can I go despite the limitations that comes with being black. Focusing on your intelligence/ uniqueness/talent is what will allow you to overcome all the challenges/struggles you will experience along the way. When you focus on your limitations, it’s hard to focus on the other positive side of it. When you focus too much on your weakness, you don’t see your strength and what you are capable of doing. Often times, we focus too much on our limitations, oh, I can’t get this job, I can’t do this because I’m black. Guess what, because of that you don’t push yourself the way you should. You never think of the other aspect that I might have something unique to offer, so what if it’s hard out there, I can do it and i will be okay. We constantly talk/focus on our limitations, it’s crippled us in some ways than help us. Many young black youths today have access to good enough resources but don’t make best use of it because they are only focusing on the limitations without trying at all.

  • http://twitter.com/QueenieSilky Ketchup

    Africans dont use the race card as much as African Americans and Black British people do. I guess the props go to his African Upbringing

    • dancerzrule14

      maybe u should consider the fact that african-americans and black-brits are more exposed to white ppl and racism.i would think that, that would be obvious to ppl (and btw hes british).

      • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=536872959 Aaron T. Starks

        Uuuuuh, you do know that white people colonized and exploited most of Africa, right?

    • Live_in_LDN

      Um that’s maybe because they are the majority in their country and many don’t often come in contact with other races as much as African Americans and Brits.

    • Msmykimoto2u

      Hmm maybe because Africans live in Africa where the majority is black. We’re still the minority here sweetie =)

    • A.J.

      That’s because (with all due respect, they haven’t gone through the same things that Black Americans and Black Brits have in terms of overt and covert racism, minimal or offensive representation in the media, frequent contact with a Eurocentric beauty standard and white people in general, etc.

  • Samantha Rodriguez

    say it again IDRIS!! on another note.. what’s a ‘thesbian’? R.I.P. spell check and proofreading.

    • fablus1

      an actor.

      • sammi_lu

        thanks fablus1 but I was messing with MN on that one..the article I see has since been edited but originally misspelled ‘thespian’, which yes is an actor. :)

  • ebony

    I think he has a good point. Everyday he looks in the mirror, he is reminded that he is black. No need to continue focusing on it and talking about the struggle. He’s handsome, successful and an awesome actor who HAPPENS to be black.

  • ladyE1988

    i see his point though…people are probably ALWAYS expecting black people to play the “race card” but if you do that then all that does is put you in a box…so why not just take it in the other direction and really not mention it at all…i feel you Idris…witcho FOINE a$$ ;-)

  • bluekissess

    Anything he’s says I’d love so it doesn’t even matter