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Africans, we hold on to our youths and whip them into shape.

Idris Elba

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Idris Elba
Age: 52
Born: 1972
Born: September 6
Actor
Composer
Disc Jockey
Film Actor
Film Director
Film Producer
Record Producer
Stage Actor
Television Actor
Television Producer
Hackney
Big Driis the Londoner
DJ Big Driis
Idrissa Akuna Elba Obe
Youth
Hold
Youths
Africans
Whip
Whips
Shape
Shapes

More quotes by Idris Elba

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It was deeply important for me to understand where Mandela came from. Because we know where he was going, and that's a famous story, but who was he? Where did he come from? What was his upbringing?
Idris Elba
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If you go to Africa and you're white, you're probably not going to get that much work either. But the fact is that there is a longer history of black integration in the U.S. I don't have any resentment about this: I did the maths, calculated it against my ambition and decided to leave England.
Idris Elba
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I want to go to Sierra Leone with something - whether it's some sort of contribution to healthcare, or to the entertainment industry. My cousin is a nurse we are talking about opening a clinic.
Idris Elba
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I was always a real athletic kid. Then when I got older, I just figured it was part of life to keep training.
Idris Elba
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The only thing I change mainly is my sneakers. I love sneakers. But everything's sort of black or jeans. Jeans, always.
Idris Elba
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There's the argument that you can relate to someone who's completely unrelatable. In the way that a director shows you his imagination on a film, then I get to show you my imagination in a big dumb character.
Idris Elba
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Are there differences between black actors’ opportunities and white actors’ opportunities? Yes, there are. It’s been said.
Idris Elba
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I'm a little sheepish about it. Whenever I meet fans and they're like, 'Oh, you're so sexy,' I just don't get that. There's no way one man can be universally sexy.
Idris Elba
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When you come from an under-privileged background, oftentimes, you feel a little overwhelmed by your education or your lack of.
Idris Elba
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I love to play different roles. That's just the kind of actor I am.
Idris Elba
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It could be Grammy night, Oscar night, whatever - I don't feel the pressure to be there.
Idris Elba
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The role of my agent has just been to get me in the room. If I can get in the room - say the character is just a charming man who lives next door - then I'll walk in there and be as charming as I can and they will think to themselves, 'I don't see why we can't cast him.
Idris Elba
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I'm not a popular actor. I don't necessarily want to be famous. I want to be known for great work. I want to be known to surprise audiences.
Idris Elba
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I'm rebelling against being handed a career, like, 'You're the next this you're the next that.' I'm not the next anything, I'm the first me. I can't be myself, I can't just be Idris Elba. But that's just the nature of the business.
Idris Elba
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You’re directing a movie, but you are at the head of a ship of people, a whole fleet of people. And being able to manage that - being able to handle yourself as a director being a leader - that’s massively important.
Idris Elba
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I try to fit in workouts whenever I can.
Idris Elba
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Sean Connery wasn't the Scottish James Bond, and Daniel Craig wasn't the blue-eyed James Bond. So if I played him, I don't want to be called the black James Bond.
Idris Elba
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The one album I can't live without is called 'Cumbolo' by a band called Culture. Every song on their album is deep, but there's one in particular called 'This Train.' I have a tattoo of the lyrics on my left arm.
Idris Elba
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As much as it's nice to step into that massive world of Hollywood and be a big, famous actor, I prefer the career of actors that have really chosen smartly and done really amazing performances. Maybe they're not as known, but their careers are a bit more interesting.
Idris Elba
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White actors still get way more money in Hollywood. It's been that way for a very long time. I hope it'll change, but it's a matter of forcing that change.
Idris Elba