- published: 19 Jan 2016
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Idrissa Akuna "Idris" Elba, OBE (/ˈɪdrəs ˈɛlbə/; born 6 September 1972) is a British actor, musician, and DJ. He is best known for his portrayal of drug lord and aspiring businessman Russell "Stringer" Bell in the HBO series The Wire, Detective John Luther in the BBC One series Luther, and Nelson Mandela in the 2013 biographical film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. He has been nominated five times for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film, winning one, as well being nominated four times for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Elba has appeared in films such as American Gangster (2007), Takers (2010), Thor (2011), Prometheus (2012), Pacific Rim (2013), Thor: The Dark World (2013), and Beasts of No Nation (2015). In addition to his acting work, he is a DJ under the moniker DJ Big Driis (or Big Driis the Londoner) and hip hop soul musician.
Elba was born in Newham, London. His father, Winston, was a Sierra Leonean who worked in a Dagenham Ford motor factory, and his mother, Eve, was a Ghanaian who had a clerical job. Elba's parents married in Sierra Leone and moved to London. Elba was raised in East Ham and shortened his first name from Idrissa to Idris at school in Canning Town, where he first became involved in acting. He credits The Stage with giving him his first big break; having seen an advertisement for a play in the newspaper, Elba auditioned and met his first agent while performing in the role. In 1986, he began helping an uncle with his wedding DJ business; within a year, he had started his own DJ company with some of his friends.
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