Idris Elba has revealed his plans to leave acting in the future. The Golden Globe-winning actor recently sat down for a Q&A session, where he detailed his reasons for this decision and shed light on his future endeavors.
Idris Elba talks about leaving acting
Idris Elba recently appeared at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, December 10, to discuss his new directorial shott film, Dust To Dreams. During the interview, the Luther star revealed that he eventually wants to leave acting and become a full-time director.
“I’m hoping that my fan base as an actor isn’t mad at me,” Elba began, before declaring, “Eventually I want to transfer to be a director fully,” Daily Mail reported.
Elba further explained, saying, “I’ve been acting for a long time. I love it still, but I think directing allows me to flex slightly different muscles and just be a part of the set in a different way. I really enjoy it.”
Later, Elba reportedly also discussed other personal and philanthropic endeavors that he hopes to venture into in the future. “There is a possibility that I may go to school and just study human science, not political science, because I think humans respond to humans regardless of whether it’s politics or sports. It’s about humans,” Elba shared.
“I’d like to maybe study that so that I can be more effective when it comes to some of the philanthropy work I’ve been doing and some of the activism work,” he continued. “I think I’ve been quite public about the possibilities, the opportunities in Africa for the media sector, period, which is news, which is fashion, which is music,” Elba further noted.
The short film Dust To Dreams marks Elba’s first directorial work since his 2018 feature Yardie. He also discussed his upcoming project as a director, This Is How It Goes.
Meanwhile, Elba is also returning to the screen as Detective John Luther in a new movie. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the upcoming film will begin shooting in February 2026.
