Get QuoteDark Inspirational Quotes App

" 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. "

Related Quotes:

" I'm not interested in making all-black films - I come from a very diverse culture; I want to work with every type of person. I work a lot with women executives because they seem to be a lot more open minded about that and a lot more progressive in that way. "

Idris Elba

Way

Work

Culture

" I was cast in 'Thor' and I'm cast as a Nordic god. If you know anything about the Nords, they don't look like me but there you go. I think that's a sign of the times for the future. I think we will see multi-level casting. I think we will see that, and I think that's good. "

Idris Elba

Future

Think

" I knew that if I wanted to be all I could be, I would have to go to the U.S. It took three years to get the accent right. "

" If you are going to call a film a 'black film' then you have to make a film that represents everyone that's black, which is almost impossible. That is why white films are not called white films, they are just called 'films.' "

" People expect me to be that guy. But I'm more east London boy than east Baltimore. "

Idris Elba

Expect

London

" I don't get recognised that much yet in London, but when I do I get a real sense of achievement. "

" What really excites me in a project is when it goes in a way you haven't been before. "

Idris Elba

Way

Before

" The long and short of it is that I am now in a position in England to green light movies, and that's really excellent - not high-budget movies, but movies none the less. "

" I'm an ambitious person. I never consider myself in competition with anyone, and I'm not saying that from an arrogant standpoint, it's just that my journey started so, so long ago, and I'm still on it and I won't stand still. "

" The less I talk about being black, the better. "

" I get criticized for taking roles in films like 'Ghost Rider 2', but if you look at my resume, dude, I've mixed it up as much as I can. "

Idris Elba

You

Look

" As an actor, you're trained to do the right thing, be politically correct, say your lines, say the right thing about the people you're working with. "

" You watch yourself age and it's hard to feel like a sex symbol. "

" I have one of these bodies. When I was younger, I could never put weight on, and now that I'm a little older, there's a natural sort of chubbiness coming. But honestly, if I work out for a week, it drops off in no time. "

" Are there differences between black actors' opportunities and white actors' opportunities? Yes, there are. It's been said. "

" 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. "

" I've always had ambition, and the acting was successful and put my name on the map, but it was never the plan to stop there. "

" You know, film is the ultimate goal in an actor's career. I mean, I still love TV. I have my feet firmly stamped in it. But my opportunities have been bigger and better. "

" It's actually quite criminal how 'The Wire' was systematically ignored. "

" Bond? It is a bit like saying, 'Do you want to play Superman?' Anyone would dream of it. It's one of the most coveted roles in film. I'd be honoured. But I don't know if it will actually happen. I'm just happy with the idea of being associated with it. It's nice there's a lot of good will. "

" I would never be fearful of any character. "

" I was on a well-beaten path of actors - what we all call 'the Law and Order route'. I spent two years of auditioning for everything... and then 'The Wire' came up. "

" 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. "

" The English are good at bad guys - the James Bond-style villain, cunning, slow-burning. The Americans are much more obvious about it. "

Idris Elba

Villain

Good

" I still sing on bits and pieces. Singing's something that I love to do, but it's not something that I pursue as a career. "

" I don't have a place that I call home at the moment because there's no point. I mean, I'm a traveling circus for a while. It's weird. Like, if I wanted to go home, there's nowhere to go. I just go to a hotel. But I've kind of gotten used to it. "

" Not obsessed with particularly Nike, but sneakers in general. I love them. "

" 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. "

" 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

Talking

Want

" Yeah, I know, any time you hear an actor say, 'I do music', you cringe. But I want to be gradual with my music. I want to earn my stripes. "