Actor Highlight: Idris Elba’s best performances (and where to stream)

Often times, movie watchers have to come to qualms of the reality that their favorite stars are not nearly as interesting as the characters they play on screen. However, this is not the case for the eclectic Idris Elba, who, in one calendar year, starred and excelled (as usual) in his MCU role as Heimdall, was named People Magazine’s Sexiest man Alive, and DJ’d at Coachella.

Sources from a recent The Guardian interview shines light on other ways Elba invests his demanding time: he is also an accomplished rapper who, in his released songs, personifies the gritty London scene, an author for children’s books set to hit shelves in 2022, the host of a new podcast and even a philanthropist and activist in the fight against world hunger.

Elba’s passion for humanitarian relief could possibly be linked to bis own humble beginnings in the industry.

It is bewildering to think before Idris Elba was the multi-hyphenate pillar of excellence he is today, Idris was living out of his van, moonlighting at bars in the Brooklyn borough as he hustled for years to book acting gigs.

When promoting his self-produced Netflix movie Turn Up Charlie, the superstar discussed his situation at the time with interviewer Margaret Gardiner prior to catching his big break as drug savant, Stringer, on the HBO hit series: The Wire. He shared with the source:

"“I remember when I moved to America as an actor from England… and I realized that when I got there I wasn’t going to work, It wasn’t going to be easy. And I realized a I left a career in England which was doing well, it was fruitful, it was getting lots of roles. And now I was homeless and broke…”"

Recently, Idris has been setting the entertainment scene ablaze as the star of the highly positive reviewed Suicide Squad and the news that has come to surface of being cast as the voice actor for the iconic Knuckles in the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog feature film sequel.

What’s next for Idris Elba?

As big of a year as Idris Elba has had, expect to see more of the pride of Hackney, London in his leading role in the anticipated  Netflix western The Harder They Fall  (set to be released Oct. 6).

Whether it be on the turntables or on the silver screen, Idris Elba lives to amaze and uplift. His fandom is crosses over genre and country lines, and although we are ecstatic for Elba’s confirmed projects to come in the near future, we have wait in hopeful suspense that he takes on the the 007 mantel from Daniel Craig as the heavily circulated rumor of Idris Elba becoming the new James Bond. As the IP holders of the franchise, don’t let us down Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios.

Check out more Idris Elba features available to stream

On Netflix, you can stream:

• Concrete Cowboy
• Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
• Beasts of No Nation
• The Losers (also on HBO)
• The Take
• Turn Up Charlie
• Prom Night
• Takers (also on Prime)

On Hulu, you can stream:

• The Mountain Between Us
• 100 Streets (also on Prime)
• Luther (also on HBO)
• Star Trek Beyond
• Ultraviolet

On Amazon Prime, you can stream:

• No Good Deed
• Idris Elba: King of Speed
• Second Coming

On HBO Max, you can stream:

• Suicide Squad
• Prometheus
• The Wire
• 28 Weeks Later
• Tyler Perry’s Daddy’s Little Girls
• Sometimes in April

On Disney+, you can stream:

• Thor
• Thor: The Dark World
• Thor: Ragnarok
• Zootopia
• Finding Dory

Which Idris Elba performance is your favorite? Which one are you most looking forward to see?