Revisit " Sister, Sister " and more '90s TV throwbacks that need a revival now. See our picks list. If he wasn't acting, that is. The " Turn Up Charlie " star relates to his character and shares the strangest jobs he's had. Watch now. Looking for some great streaming picks? Check out some of the IMDb editors' favorites movies and shows to round out your Watchlist. Sign In. Idris Elba Actor Producer Writer. Down 57 this week.

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Idris Elba. Toronto film festival announces line-up with Mark Wahlberg drama premiering. Published: 30 Jul Published: 22 Jul Published: 16 Jul Idris Elba, Viola Davis and over stars call on Hollywood to divest from police.
Elba was born to immigrant working-class parents his father was from Sierra Leone , and his mother was born in Ghana. Beginning in his late teens, he worked as a disc jockey under the name DJ Big Driis later Big Driis the Londoner while auditioning for acting roles. From the mids he appeared often on British TV, his roles including recurring characters on Insiders , Family Affairs , and Dangerfield He branched out into comedy on the American version of the sitcom The Office and into romance on the comedy-drama The Big C. Elba later earned critical acclaim as the complex antihero Detective Chief Inspector John Luther in the crime series Luther —. During this time, the imposing 6-foot 3-inch 1. He subsequently appeared in such movies as 28 Weeks Later , American Gangster , and Obsessed
He made his directorial debut in with an adaptation of the novel Yardie by Victor Headley. He credits The Stage with giving him his first big break, having seen an advertisement for a play in it; he auditioned and met his first agent while performing in the role. In , he landed his first significant role on a series called Bramwell , a medical drama set in s England. He played a central character in an episode of Season 1, an African petty thief named Charlie Carter, who lost his white wife to childbirth and had to figure out how to support his newborn daughter.