Over the weekend we met a new side of Idris Elba in No Good Deed.
The movie tells the survival tale of Taraji P. Henson’s character, Terri, who becomes a prisoner to unstable escaped convict, Colin Evans (Idris) after he enters her home uninvited. Instead of us cheering for the good look charmer, we found ourselves hoping he wouldn’t succeed, looks and all. The movie which topped the box office also opened our curiosity to know more about this gorgeous actor.
If you haven’t seen No Good Deed already—what are you waiting for—make sure you see it in theaters very soon, but until then, check out the 11 things you may not know about Idris Elba.
All Photos Credit: Getty
Family
His mother, Eve, is from Ghana and father, Winstom, is from Sierra Leone.
DJ
Has been a DJ since the age of 14 and goes by the name Big Driis.
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Rapper
Also going by the name Driis, Elba is a rapper as well and you can hear some of his music on myspace. He also has a feature on co-produced album, Jay Z’s American Gangster.
Musical Theatre
He attended the National Youth Music Theatre in London, England and toured with the production of Guys and Dolls.
Accent
Despite sounding so real, his American accent is fake.
The Wire
He’s often approached by drug dealers based on his role as “Stringer” on HBO’s The Wire.
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The Office
He has a comedic side as he appeared in six episodes of The Office.
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Video Star
He’s appeared in Mumford & Sons’ music video ‘Love of the Light’
Drug Dealer
“I was running with cats. I mean, I was DJ’ing, but I was also pushing bags of weed; I was doing my work. I had to,” he told GQ.
Homeless
After breaking up with his ex-wife, Kim Elba, he was forced to live out of his Astro Van.
Doorman
He worked at comedy club Carolines, where he was a doorman and also made transactions there. “All those black comedians, they knew me as a doorman,” he told GQ.