A British actor, Idrissa Akuna Elba, commonly known as Idris Elba, the star in the movie Mandela: Walk to Freedom, is planning to settle in Africa, where his story began. Born in London by a Ghanaian mother and father from Sierra Leone, the actor has shown his strong attachment to the African continent.
While appearing on BBC on Wednesday, October 23, 2024, Elba said that he would relocate and settle in Africa within the next decade as part of his plans to support the continent’s movie industry, though in the spirit of Pan-Africanism he would not commit to living in a specific country.
“I think I will move in the next five, 10 years, God willing. I am here to bolster the film industry. That is a 10-year process. I won’t be able to do that from overseas. I need to be in-country, on the continent. I am going to live in Accra; I am going to live in Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital; I am going to live in Zanzibar, Tanzania. I am going to try and go where they are telling stories. That is really important,” Elba said.
Elba said that he wants to use his star power to back Africa’s rapidly growing film business because he believes that it is important that Africans get to tell their own stories by building a film studio on the Tanzanian islands of Zanzibar as well as one in Ghana’s capital, Accra.
The 52-year-old actor has starred in movies like Mandela: Walk to Freedom, Luther: The Fallen Sun, Prom Night, The Jungle Book, Finding Dory, Fast & Furious, Beast, The Dark Tower, American Gangster, No Good Deed, A Hundred Streets, The Sucide Squad, The Mountain Between Us, Bastille Day, Daddy’s Little Girls, Obsessed, The Gunman, and many others.
Elba is an English actor, rapper, singer, and DJ. He has received a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for three BAFTA Awards and six Emmy Awards. In 2016, he was named in the Time 100 list of the Most Influential People in the World. His films have fetched over $9.8 billion at the global box office, and he is one of the top 20 highest recognized actors.
