What Now? with Trevor Noah - Idris Elba [VIDEO]

Episode Date: February 29, 2024

Trevor sits down in Abu Dhabi with actor, director and DJ, Idris Elba. The two of them swap stories about taking the plunge and moving to America for work and Elba shares the secret he was told not to reveal when auditioning for The Wire. They also discuss why Africa may be the future of entertainment, the art of the accent, and debate who can best pull off a Nelson Mandela impression. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Wow, we're really talking? We're doing this, man. Man. We're doing this. You happy? Sound happy? Yes? Picture happy? Everybody's happy? All right. Then the most important question is, is Idris happy?

How are you feeling? I'm feeling good. I mean, I'm shocked that you're awake. You were in LA a few days ago. I was in LA, yeah, less than 48 hours ago. Okay. I passed through London to come to Abu Dhabi. Right.

I've been doing some miles, bro. You really have? Some miles, yeah. Do you get to go to the lounge now? Yes. I mean, but no, you know, honestly, airports can be daunting. I'm not an anxious flyer, but the airports make me anxious. Are you being serious right now?

Yeah, no, seriously. At airports, there's just too much going on. It feels so fragile. It's weird. You know, I would feel the calmest if I saw Idris Elba in an airport. I'm not even joking because you carry yourself in a way where I'd be like, man, everything's going better. And I'd look and I'd be like, man, everything's going better. And I'd look and I'd be like,

is that Idris Elba? Everything's going to be okay, y'all. Everything's going to be okay. This is What Now? with Trevor Noah. This episode is brought to you by Peloton. Forget the pressure to be crushing your workout on day one. Just start moving with the Peloton Bike, Bike Plus, Tread, Row, Guide, or App.

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Whopper Wednesday, of course. When you can get a great deal on a whopper. Flame grilled and made your way. And you won't want to miss it. So make every Wednesday a Whopper Wednesday. Only at Burger King, where you rule. You know, if you told me I would be in Abu Dhabi, just an hour away from Dubai, in a hotel room overlooking what seems like a beautiful bay, also combined with like, I don't

know, an office block, speaking to Idris Elba, I would have said to you, this is probably a psychedelic dream that you're having. But that's exactly where I am. Chatting to Idris Elba in Abu Dhabi. And, oh yeah, before we jump into everything, congratulations on the SAG Awards. That was beautiful.

Oh. That was really beautiful. Coming from you? No, man, for real. That was really, really beautiful. It was funny. It was heartfelt. It was like a vibe.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold up, hold up, hold up. You just tell me I was funny. You know that you're funny, though. No, bro. You know that you're funny. Okay, so me and you having a laugh about Fufu or African stuff, you know, we laugh.

Yeah, yeah. But to stand up in front of the world like that and do what you do, I thought about you a lot, actually, because you have a very good way of commanding a room. we laugh yeah yeah to stand up in front of the world like that and do what you do i've thought about you a lot actually because you have a very good way of commanding a room your comic timing is hilarious you go off the cuff and come back onto the script i was thinking about trevor i was trying to challenge it no man you killed it if you were channeling me i now see me differently i actually want to see my whole life channeled through Idris Elba now. If you're saying you were doing Trevor Noah, I'm like, damn. I was. Nah, man, for real. It was, what was it like? I haven't seen you host before, by the way. Yeah, I don't, actually, I wasn't

meant to be hosting. They just gave me more segments than anyone else because I had won two awards one time. They duped me. They said, no, no, no, it's just a couple more links. I'm hosting. Yeah, you were hosting. It was, it was a beautiful moment for me, me. They said, no, no, no, it's just a couple more links. I'm hosting. Yeah, you were hosting. It was a beautiful moment for me, man. I think, one, it was cool to see something different. Two, I loved the vibe in the room. Like, you know, acting is such a weird profession in that from the outside, acting seems impervious to anything. You know what I mean?

I'm sure you know what I mean by this. You know, like a lot of people out there will see you as an actor. They see anybody as an actor and they go, oh, what a great job. What a great life. It's perfect. Nothing affects you. You don't have the stress that a normal person has. And I noticed in the awards, you and other actors spent a lot of time talking about what it was like going through the strikes in Hollywood, what it was like having the industry shut down.

And I wondered, like, do those moments make you re-realize the fragility of the industry you're in? A hundred percent. Yeah. I mean, in terms of strikes, you know, in terms of workers' rights, because that's what it's all about, right? It's like we're workers, one way or another, of an industry. We're called actors, called superstars, but we're workers. And the rights of those workers are fragile,

especially in an industry that, you know, is dominated by a few. And what was interesting about that room is that, I mean, there was the biggest names in the film industry who all went through the same thing, you know, and it was a strike and it was crippling. I think for all of us, you know, we all, all the actors in that room just realized that, you know, we're lucky to be working, lucky to have the industry that we have.

And we have a union that actually really fought for some really important issues. Was there ever a moment in your life when you stopped? I mean, fear is the wrong word, but it's like, so maybe I'll try and explain this for people who aren't aware. A lot of people know that in acting there's auditioning. A lot of people know that in acting, you don't know when you may get your next role, et cetera.

But I think few people truly appreciate how unpredictable it is. You know, I wonder, has there ever been a moment in your career when you felt secure as Idris, where you were like, all right, no, I'm good now? Or is there always that thing, that shadow behind you going like, you never know, Idris, where you were like, all right, no, I'm good now? Or is there always that thing, that shadow behind you going like, you never know, Idris, you never know? You know, it's interesting because when I did The Wire, okay, The Wire was a four-year explosion of my life.

Before The Wire, I was literally penniless in New York City. And after The Wire, I was arguably one of the most famous black actors, at least, in America. Right. Because of my character, Stringer Bell. It was so celebrated. And at that time, leaving The Wire, because I didn't know I was going to die.

I didn't know my character was going to die. Wait, what do you mean you didn't know he was going to die? I didn't know my character was going to die until we got the episode. Wait, for real? Yeah, yeah, 100. That's another story altogether. Damn. But it was tough love.

But at that time, I was flying high. I mean, I could go anywhere. Like, people were comparing me to Denz. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, I was only third season in. Anyway, when it fell off very quickly, very suddenly, I remember thinking, oh, I was only third season in any, when it, when it fell off very quickly, very suddenly, I remember thinking,

Oh, I'm good. I'm, I'm string of bell. Yeah. And that was a tough pill to swallow. Although I did work, but it was not the same.

You see, that's, that's something I don't even think about. Just my character dying like when i'm when i'm doing when i'm doing a hosting gig i'm doing comedy there's not even a moment where i think to myself yep someone might surprise me and tell me hey trevor after the next ad break you are no longer the host there's a whole there's a there's a piano that's gonna drop on your head and you're gone yeah that. That's. That was, it was a bit like this, you know.

You usually get your scripts, you know, like two, three in a row. They write them. Right. And I think the way I got it, I got episode seven. I was like, oh, episode seven. I got episode seven. Where's eight? Can I get eight?

What's wrong? You're not in eight. What do you mean I'm not in eight? You should read it. That's how I kind of found out. I was like, wait, stringer, stringer, stringer, stringer. What? And it was crazy. It was like that that that's how i found out and to your point you know it was it was scary yeah you have i i will say from the outside at least one of the most amazing careers in that you you've played everything you play everyone you exist everywhere doing everything some people want you to be idris elba the action star you know what i mean but then some people go man idris elba can also be the the vulnerable love interest and then obviously you know you're in avengers you you know you're out there conquering fast and the furious etc, etc. I know that it wasn't easy.

But I want to know how and why you thought you could play something more than the industry wanted you to play. Because if you're successful as a gangster, Hollywood goes you're a gangster. And it's not even like a negative thing. Hollywood just goes, we know that you can do this. So you can do this. You do this. You chose not to do that. Why?

I think I learned early on the power of no. Like, when I moved to America to become an actor there, my career in England wasn't bad. It was good. How old were you when you moved? I was probably about 25, 26 years old. Oh, damn. Okay. And there was this junction where I said, I'm not going to do what you want me to do in England. I'm going to say no. And I'm going to jump ship and go to America. And the power of no

was my liberator. Because in England, there was this definite glass ceiling. You could see it coming. You know, it was like, you're going to play one kind of role. And in England, it's a smaller market. Back then, going to America was like, what? You're going, what? My guy, are you all right? Stay here.

And so post The Wire, every role that came my way was all gangsters. Yeah. All of them. You know, films know films television and i had to say no but i was okay with saying no because i thought no i've got some range i need to be able to show that range and that's that was definitely um i don't know it was like i said it was a liberator for me to be able to know that the power of no is important. Yeah. But talk me through some of the doubts you come from the UK. You're doing,

you're doing decently there, right? It's a small market, but it's a robust market. You know, once you're in, you're working, you're doing things,

BBC, you know, channel four, whatever you come to the U S it wasn't an overnight thing for you though. In the U S was it? No, Once you're in, you're working, you're doing things, BBC, you know, Channel 4, whatever. You come to the US. It wasn't an overnight thing for you though in the US, was it? No. I mean, the first two or three years was just flatline.

Because I've heard rumors of you working at like a comedy club. I remember someone saying this once. They were like, I met Idris at a comedy club. And I was like, what do you mean you met Idris like doing stand up they're like no he was working the door I wasn't doing stand up I was standing up

at the door that's what I was doing the original stand up the original stand up no but okay so talk me through so what part of the career is this happening

so you've come to the US yeah I've come yeah I had some savings yeah my wife at the time I was married, you know, we were young. We were like, let's go to America.

Had savings. I was like, power of no. This is great. We're out here. I didn't work for two years. Damn. Straight 24 months, no money. And my savings ran out in the first six months.

And it was a strugs. So, you know, that's where I started to DJ in New York. I brought my records over. Literally, I shipped over six crates of records. This is wild. And I moved from New York because I couldn't afford New York. I ended up in Jersey City. The rent was much cheaper.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I reinvented, bro. It was one of these moments where it's like you have to dig in or you're going home. Yeah, but you didn't think of going home six months in, eight months in, 12 months in, 16 months in? No. What is keeping you from going home during that? What is the motivating force in your life that didn't allow you to give up? I'm trying to understand that.

I think it was, you know, I jumped the ship, man. Like I had done something no English, no black actor, no young man had done that I knew, which is I'm going to go to America and I'm going to be an actor over here. And I couldn't take the idea of letting that fail. I just couldn't. I did not want that to fail. And I was auditioning for a lot of them, but my accent wasn't very good.

I couldn't really, you know, pull it off. How did you get the accent good? Because you have one of the best accents. Your accent is so good. I've seen people get angry when they discover that you're not American. I've seen people get really, like, not even angry, like they're angry that you could fool them to that level. Yeah.

No, I've been in those conversations. I think the way I got, because I was unemployed, bro. And I was living in New Jersey. I lived in Brooklyn for a little bit. I was living life, you know. I was working the door. I was living in New Jersey I lived in Brooklyn for a little bit um I was living life you know I was working the door I was bartending I was uh door uh DJing and before you know it you just start speaking like an American because you end up saying you're in the ting you're in the ting and then you know third year in though it started to get really struggled because my wife and I were going through some stuff. She was pregnant.

And there's one casting director. I talk about it all the time, Alexa Fogel. She would put me up for stuff. And she said, hey, listen, this wire thing's come up. It's called The Wire. It's a pilot. They're going to shoot it in January. But if you go in, you cannot let them know you aren't American because they will not.

I mean, this is about Baltimore. It's very specific. They don't they will not. I mean, this is about Baltimore. It's very specific. They don't want any strangers. I mean, please. So I was auditioning for this thing, and I auditioned for four weeks straight in an American accent. And on the fourth audition, you know, the producer, David Simon, and another producer who's passed now, great guy,

they're in the room just like this. And they said to me, Idris, where are you from? That is the phrase every immigrant is terrified of hearing no matter where they are in the world. Excuse me, where are you from? You know when your palms start

sweating? Little sweat perforations in your forehead and you're like, oh man. And I'm thinking to myself, they told you don't say nothing. Yeah. And I'm thinking, oh, your accent is shit. Oh, he sussed you.

And I was like, I'm looking at him and by this time I've known him just for audition. Yeah. Hey, you just come on, sit down. Why don't you do the scene again? You know, that kind of thing. I look at him and I said,

I'm from East London. The room just exploded. Oh my God. I told you. No, you didn't know. You didn't know. And I'm sitting there, whoa, what is going on?

And it's like, yo, we had a bet. I said that he's not from Baltimore. He's not from Brooklyn. He's from somewhere else. I thought maybe Jamaican, maybe Haitian. You're from England. And this is the conversation I'm sitting there. And they were like, okay, you got the job.

You got the job. We don't want you to play Avon, though. We want you to play Stringer Bell. And I was in the room. Oh, man, so you went for Avon. though. We want you to play Stringer Bell. And that was in the room. Oh, man, so you were in for Avon. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You got the job. I'll tell Alexa, welcome.

Thank you. But wow, you owe me money. I'm walking out of the room like, did my life just change? I don't know. What's going on? And that was it. That was the way I got that film. You see, that's what I mean about serendipitous.

I love moments like that where now I'm trying to picture the show with you as Ava it doesn't work in my head it might have worked, it might not but you know what I mean I love that phrase though where are you from because in a way what you said is

so much deeper than just you putting on an accent. You lived as an American. Do you know what I'm saying? I don't think that's any coincidence. The fact that you were grinding, the fact that you were working multiple jobs, the fact that you didn't know what was going to happen

from one paycheck to the next, the fact that you were in barbershops and in comedy clubs and working the bar and DJing in a really strange way, both sad and beautiful at the same time. You were living as an American. Oh yeah. The time that I knew I was American is when I had to go to the DMV to get my license. Okay, bro. Like if anyone knows what that is, that is like, oh my days. That was one of the most, as soon as I had my license, bro like if anyone knows what that is that is like oh my days that was one of the most as soon as i had my license i was like yes i can't tell me nothing because the process the process was crazy oh no no it's that's that's a that's a rites of passage i feel like you have not lived in america until you've gone to the dmv in america

we're going to continue this conversation right after this short break you have not lived in America until you've gone to the DMV in America. We're going to continue this conversation right after this short break. FanDuel Casino's exclusive live dealer studio has your chance at the number one feeling, winning, which beats even the 27th best feeling, saying I do. Who wants this last parachute? I do. Enjoy the number one feeling, winning, in an exciting live dealer studio, exclusively on FanDuel Casino, where winning is undefeated. 19 plus and physically located in Ontario.

Gambling problem? Call 1-866-531-2600 or visit connectsontario.ca. Please play responsibly. But let's talk a little bit about that like where you from you know there's a there's a special connection i always feel with people who have moved from one place especially the place they were born and lived to another place to try and do something that requires them to ingratiate themselves to the people of that place you know i i obviously started my career in south africa south africa is very similar to the uk in that we have a small industry but it works it's robust you know and you do the little that you can and you you do it in the world that they allow you to do it in

going to america was ridiculous in my world people literally were like what are you doing why like why why america you know and and what would you say about america well yeah you see my thing was i was never going for america i don't know if you can relate to this but when i when i look at anything that i'm doing I try to do it to the best of my ability and almost to the end of what it is supposed to be. Right. So if I'm doing comedy, I do my best. I toured everywhere in South Africa.

I started touring in Southern Africa. So I was in Namibia. I was in Zambia. I was in Botswana. I was doing my comedy everywhere. The natural extension of that comedy is going to America, right? Because if you want to be one of the best comedians in the world, you cannot do it without performing at the top stages, at the top levels.

I was already performing in the UK. You know, I was doing shows in everywhere from London to Brighton, Newcastle, Liverpool, you name it. The circuit. Yeah, I've been there, you know. Oh, you're not bad, are you, mate? You know what I was doing shows in everywhere from London to Brighton, Newcastle, Liverpool, you name it. The circuit. Yeah, I've been there, you know. Oh, you're not bad, are you, man? You know what I mean? I've been there.

I was doing it. But the US comes with a different type of pressure, with a different type of landscape. And so I went, I need to go and try this there. And it wasn't about like the bright lights of America. It was about the natural progression of my, of my career. But then just like you, you now move into a new place where people go,

you sound funny. You don't say like, I remember when I was, when I was first hosting the daily show, no joke. I thought one of the biggest complaints we'd get would be about my view on America or my politics or whatever. The biggest complaint I got was about how I say the word controversy.

And then... Complaint? Yeah, there was like a big... We got letters. We got letters daily. And the producers sat me down at some point and they were like, hey, Trev, so there are some words that you say, it's throwing people off a little bit and we understand it, but is there a way you could find a middle ground?

Do you know what I mean? I had to relearn so many words just because you're trying to work within the space. And in a weird way, it then starts to redefine who are you. Yeah. And you are someone else. I wouldn't say you're someone else right because you always take your roots with you if you're rooted if you're a rooted person you take that with you right but adaptation definitely you know yeah and i think that it's not

for everyone you know like new parts of you definitely 100 you know it's kind of like i had what i call an accent crisis i had a crisis of accent because when I came out of The Wire and, you know, if I was going to a party or whatever, I was doing an interview or something and I talked the way I talked, they'd be like, yo, why are you talking like that, man? No, for real though, what? What, you doing a part? What are you doing, man?

And you're like. You try to figure out if you want friction, right? That's how I talk. No, seriously. and you're like you try to figure out if you want friction right that's how I talk no seriously they would almost feel like yo you you you got me man like

you're Stringer Bell you come from this and because of the wire especially was not a satire these were based on a real culture a real

epidemic if you like of American underbelly they took to my characters to the point where I had to hold myself, Idris, a certain way in definitely amongst the African-American community. Right. I had to hold myself with the sort of respect almost they had for Stringer Bell. Yeah. Which was a man trying to do good yeah a man

trying to do better than he was you know being prescribed to do wow and that really was interesting what that did to me is uh did for my confidence did for my when i went back to england going back to england and people were like yeah why are you talking like that and i just found myself you know when you know you're near england or in south africa americans come over they just got so much confidence yeah yeah bigger and brasser and yeah you know and they and they got that if they believe they got that different and i went back to england and i and i definitely felt like oh wow i have adapted myself even when i was in my mom and dad's household with my boys they were like yo you seem a bit different you seem a bit happier

you seem a little more enthusiastic that's one thing I've learned about the UK there's a little bit of like alright alright then alright then tone it down a bit

oh yeah yeah you're doing alright you're doing alright yeah it wasn't bad it wasn't bad yeah humble it's the tall poppy syndrome

it really is I think that's part of the reasons why i didn't audition well because i couldn't walk in there and be like bow this should be mine they'd be like oh interest that was a good take can you do another one i'd be like oh did you like it oh great okay i'll try again oh wait like you like that okay hold up wait till you see this one you know that wasn't me you know it's fine culturally i remember when i first started doing stand-up comedy in the u.s the you you understand this in america they would have what they call the urban rooms and then rooms right what that means is these are rooms

where black people watch black comedy and then the rest of the rooms are just, I guess, regular comedy. I always found that weird because I come from a country that's predominantly black. And we never looked at it like that. So anyway, they go, you know, people will be like, oh, you got to go perform in urban rooms. Go and do some urban rooms. And so I get to these urban rooms. And, you know, it's black comedians, black audiences. And I would get on stage.

And in South Africa, number one, Africa, you greet. So I'd walk out, I'd greet the audience. Good evening, everybody. You know, and that audience would stare at me. And I remember after one of the shows, one of my favorite people in the world, his name is Chris Spencer, comedian, really like a mentor to me in the game.

He came to me after one of the shows and he's like, he's like, hey man, he's like, did you steal something? And I said, what do you mean? He's like, man, you walk on stage like you stole something. He's like, man, you got to get on there. You got to own that stage, baby. Man, you walking on there like you ain't supposed to be there.

You start making the audience doubt themselves, man. They be looking at you like, you supposed to be there? We don't feel like you're supposed to be there. He's like, man, you got to get up there. And I was like, well, that's not how we do it. He's like, well, that's how we do it, baby. He's like, you got to understand there we don't feel like you're supposed to be there he said man you gotta get up there and i was like well that's not how we do he's like well that's how we do it baby he's like you gotta understand he's like half he's like half those people in the audience they funnier than you they know they're funnier than you so you better show them why you up there you better show them why you up there and he like it was a beautiful way you know when you connect those things you you know you find that's funny i i'd love to know like you know

in that what is it that's inspired you to connect all of these parts of yourself? Because you're not just Idris Elba, the movie star in Hollywood. I've always loved how you have bigged up the UK at every opportunity that you've been given. You've also bigged up African-Americans at every opportunity you've been given. You've adopted these communities. And one that always touches me, obviously, is Africa. Idris Elba doesn't like

wave at Africa from far. My man, your passport is stamped. Your passport is full of chul of rice. I knew you was going to say that. Fufu okra. It is full, full, full. Do you know what, Trev?

So two things that were quite significant, right, to I guess who I am today is one, my mom told me that her, my mom was born in Ghana. Yeah. Okay. Her mom has gone in, but her dad was a second world war vet from Kansas city. And on his deployment back to the States,

he heard that, yo, segregation over here is still kicking it. I mean, in the army, you know, there was segregation, but everyone was fighting for each other, right? Soldiers were going back to the States and told you can't come in the restaurant. So he said he and his brother decided they're going to go to Africa. They went to Ghana. And that's where he had 11 children, my mum being the ninth, the last one.

Wow. So that information came to me just before I went to America. And I kind of went with a slightly different purpose. I was kind of like, oh, wait, what? Oh, I've got roots here then. I mean, I belong here kind of like, oh, wait, what? Oh, I've got roots here then. I mean, I belong here kind of thing, right? The second thing is that at some point in my later life, I was probably about 29 or so, I took my DNA test.

I knew my mom had an American father, but my dad's from Sierra Leone. Very proud. Sierra Leone. Ghana. DNA. No Sierra Leonean. Wait, what?

No. 10% Ghana, 10% Nigerian, 20% Bantu, 5% Togo, 5% Senegalese, Cameroonian. I mean, it was a map, right? I looked at this thing like, what is going on? Bantu being the Southern African tribe. Yeah, that's my side of the world that traveled up huh so i looked at this thing right and i was like what the took it again same thing you took it again yeah i did i was like i'm sorry i always find it funny

when people do the same thing twice hoping for a different result i don't know why i find that so funny it's's a DNA test but I love the idea that you're like, hold on, hold on, let's try this again. And then you're like, and this time

I'm going to push certain parts of myself. I'm going to bring out certain parts of myself. I ate okra before I took it. I ate jollof. I was like,

no, hold on. What were you hoping to get the second time around? My mom said to me, I told her about this. She said, ah, kuna. Kuna's my mother. She said, kuna, I told her about this. She said, ah, Kuna. Kuna's mum would say,

Kuna, that is all money making. How much did you pay? How much did you pay? I told her. She's like, you see, to come and tell you that you're not from Sierra Leone,

your dad is from Sierra Leone, your mum is from Ghana. I'm like, yeah, but mum, scientifically, you know, that's not how it works. Kuna, Kuna, listen. Anyway, so I did it again.

I didn't even tell her the results the second time around. But this was me. And I just found myself, like, not questioning, but I was like, wow, I'm African. Yeah, man. I am from this continent. And it also reminded me that everywhere I go in Africa, probably a bit like you too, right? People claim you. Yeah. Ah, my brother.

They claim you. You know what I'm saying? You're a resident now. You know what I mean? Wherever I go. And I just, I guess I adopted that. So now as a, you know, I'm in the public eye and people, you know, talk to me about where I'm from.

I have a real rich backstory. It's beautiful. I can talk about my granddad. I can talk about my, you know, Freetown, Sierra Leone, was the home of the returned slaves. No wonder. No wonder my DNA doesn't say Freetown, Sierra Leone, because my dad's DNA is probably mixed from so many different types

of tribes, you know? My dad's DNA is probably mixed from so many different types of tribes. So that has been the very feeling I have every time I open my mouth about where I'm from. I'm from England. I was born and raised there. I'm proud of that. But out of that comes this sort of, I'm an explorer. I'm an explorer of myself.

I'm an explorer of the cultures that I'm from. And I remember, man, I think we talked about this, but when I got to play Nelson Mandela. Oh, yeah, yeah. Do you know, when it hit the news in South Africa, it was polarizing. People were like, this guy can't play. He's obviously West African.

What are you talking about he's not closer how's he gonna play Nelson okay he's tall but what are you joking

like and others were like no fantastic they got a Hollywood actor to play a great man right it was just really and I remember thinking

wow I never really thought about it until well no at the time i said dude this is the first thing i said i said nelson's light skin my agent is south african he's like it just it just it just it just listen don't ever repeat that

just don't just don't repeat that i was like no, no, but seriously, man, what are they going to say? Like, what are South Africans going to say? And then he said to me, remember when you took your DNA test? What happened? I went, yeah, you're African, baby. You're African. And so is Nelson. So just go and kick the shit out of this role.

And I remember doing this one scene. It was in Soweto. And it was one of the scenes when Nelson was a lawyer. Beginnings of his rallying, you know, for the... For the ANC. Really early parts. And he was in Soweto, beautiful suit, lawyer, the party, and, you know, boxer, radical guy, you know, suave guy.

And the director did not want me to come out and rehearse. He just wanted me to be ready. He had four cameras, 700 portions extras. Yeah, just like you coming out. All from Soweto, you know what I mean? Young people, but. So he wants you to come out and just do the speech as if you were doing the speech

because there is no doing a speech twice. And we're going to shoot it. Yeah. I just want to see what happens. I was back there like this boy oh my god i'm gonna get booed i'm gonna get booed it was almost exactly what nelson probably had to go through at the time oh yeah which is who's this guy this lawyer coming out here talking all this shit is it crazy i came out there, man. First thing I heard, I even heard someone say,

is that Stringer Bell? What is he doing up there? Right? Another one said, that's the guy from Daddy's Little Girls. I could hear them. That is so funny. So everyone knows everything you've been in. Yeah.

But he said, now he's playing Madiba. First take, mind you, they're staring at me. And this is exactly what, because at the time, Soweto was like, boy, we're not sure if we're going to, there was people listening.

They're like, are we going to stand for this, stand with this guy? Because this guy is trying to get us all in trouble. He's talking some radical shit. Yeah. And here I was, out here,

playing Nelson, dark as you can get, hitting the accent, hitting the notes, hitting the beats. And I'll never forget about it, because it's quite an emotional, rousing speech. But at the end of the first tape, man, I was in tears. Practically the first five rows of people

were in tears with me. And we're talking about freeing Africans from the bullshit, freeing them. And man, it was like, it was just the craziest mishmash of all of it. You know,

me as an actor, who am I? Where am I from? Should I be here? Do I have the right to play the big man? Then these young people who know Idris, who have celebrated Idris' career, are watching me polarised by,

can he pull off Madibs? Yeah. And then, of course, Slowly growing into it with you. Slowly growing into it with me. At the same time, Madib's at the time, slowly winning the people over the community over into his rhetoric. So it was a fascinating man.

So it's a quick, how did you, how did you keep it? Cause Nelson Mandela has one of the most difficult accents to pull off. How do you, how did you keep that in? Can you still do it till this day? Cause you have so many accents. You have like different English accents. You've got different American accents.

You've got at the SAG Awards. I don't know where you pulled out a Robert De Niro from. I'm not even joking. That was one of the most impressive. Because when you started, I was like, well, you can't do Robert De Niro. You're massive. It's like, look at your size. Look at Robert De Niro. Yo, you became Robert De de niro you even became a little lighter i don't know how you did it like your skin tone changed you became lighter you became smaller i'm not even yo that was good i'll take that no but i'll be for real though how do you how long do you hold on to them for like how do you do you keep them forever do they like slip in time it's funny when you said earlier you have one of the best American accents.

Like I disagree. If I'm in a row, I'm in a row. And at that time I can do it because I guess I've got to live it. Yeah, yeah. As close to the honesty of it as I can. But if you ask me to do it now, if you ask me to do Madib now,

it would sound like an impression. Oh, that makes, okay, okay. I can't, I can't. Like even when I'm just joking around and doing American accents, I just, they're not on point. It's not the exact same thing. Well, I find I never lose my Nelson Mandela.

I always, there'll be days where I just do it for no reason. I'm being serious. I'll literally just be walking around in my room and I'll just be like, never forget. Lost people. It's just like it's in the... I actually use... I use my Nelson Mandela

to get to my Barack Obama. Okay. Because I find they have the same... My conspiracy theory is that Mandela taught Obama how to do it. Because... The cadence.

Yeah, because they got the same thing. Because like, you know, because Mandela has the hyper-left, all South Africans, all must fight for this country. He's got that thing, right?

And then Barack, if you take, it's the natural progression of that, right? I believe we can come together. And as Americans, we got to try to, you know, it's a stronger voice. It has a lot of, but whenever I lose it, I have to go back to Mandela. Because it's the same, you know what I mean?

Right, right, right. As Americans, as Americans as Americans we got to find our way to believe in ourselves it's the same I'm fighting every impulse

to challenge you to a Baraka and a Mandela right now why don't we do it no because because why what's going to happen because you're just going to murder me

I don't believe that that's true I don't believe that that's true do your mandela i'll even like it'll be like a harmony trevor when you're doing mandela there's got to be a very you kill you see you're killing him this guy just pulled it out but when it's barack there's got to be uh no that's terrible. No, but you're Barack. You know why? Because I took it up.

Yeah, no, no. He's chesty. Chesty. Barack is also, he's also through. But you're Mandela. That was flawless. I was almost doing like Mandela like you hear him on the radio. When you're hearing a broadcast of Mandela.

Yes, because he pitches up. Yes. He does pitch up. But when you would speak to him in person. Yeah. It's funny you say the thing about like knowing yourself and the pieces of yourself. I wonder if that's what's made you such an amazing actor. Is that like you have been forced in life to discover the parts of yourself as a real character that makes you who you are.

Yeah. Do you know what I mean? And I feel like all great actors will tell you that they have to know all the parts that yourself as a real character that makes you who you are. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? And I feel like all great actors will tell you that they have to know all the parts that make the character who they are. What would you say you brought from your life into acting? And what would you say that acting has brought into your life the other way around?

I would say that in the maturity of any actor, unless you're a child actor and you win out your first audition and you're a star. Yeah. But the maturity of an actor is a patient game. You know, you kiss a lot of frogs, a lot of auditions, a lot of no's before you get that yes. Okay.

A lot of rejection. I've had some really challenging moments in my life and i definitely know as an actor where you have to have thick skin you have to go through some stuff that actually is um traumatizing for you right you know when you play a role like l, for example, he sees a lot of murder, destruction, blah, blah, blah. I go in, I play that role and I play it to all of my ability, but my body doesn't actually know I'm acting. That's the thing people take for granted, I think. Right, you know? So when I'm crying or the trauma or I'm yelling or my head's about to explode, it's great acting, great, but actually my body doesn't know the difference what do you do to get back to idris and how do you work on releasing that from you as a person the first

thing is to acknowledge that you know you're acting bro yeah it's not real go do something for yourself go treat yourself good go take some therapy like all of that has helped me become i think a better human being because i i know my boy i'm so dedicated to my characters yeah i know i need to be dedicated to idris as well which is where the dj and where the you know the philanthropy where you know oh i love that so that's all that's all for you yeah that's you because i've seen people ask many times they will say what are you doing man you've worked so hard to climb the mountain that is hollywood you have broken through so many barriers and then man's turns around and says he's a dj and he's making music and he's taking a step back from acting

and he's, but I've seen you on the decks. You are having the time of your life, but I didn't know that you were doing it for you. I thought, I thought you were looking for another challenge or another thing, but this that's like you. I need it. I need the balance. I need the, the natural juices that come from that. What is it? What is it about DJing in particular? I used to DJ, so I want to know what you... For me, it's... There's a really beautiful energy sweet point, right? It's like when you make a whole room laugh with one gesture.

Yeah. That absolute pinnacle moment is an energy that you can't replicate. And it's like when you mix two songs together and the crowd go ah that you can't i can't get that from acting yeah yeah yeah okay you know so but when you dj you do anything like that that feel that feeling is real and that energy that i get from doing that is like rejuvenating it's like that's the stuff that's the stuff my batteries are really made of you know i'm saying so i do it for that i do those i do all these different things for therapy yeah because i really do commitment made of, you know what I'm saying? So I do all these different things for therapy. Yeah.

Because I really do commitment to my roles, you know what I mean? In a way that my body doesn't know. How long have you been DJing for? When did you start? I started when I was 13. 13? 13, yeah. On like actual, that's actual records, right?

Actual DJing, yeah. That's actual, actual old school. I was there when sort of hip hop kind of began. Hip hop was 50 years. So I was kind of there in the UK buying records, the first hip hop records. Like, yo, what is this sound? Yeah.

What were your decks? Were you like SL-1200s? What were you using back then? No, man. No? Citronic belt drive. Oh my goodness. You know, with the...

Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. That's where you have to let the vinyl go at the right speed. Otherwise it's like, I love it when you call me Big Rap Rock. You gotta be so careful

with those when you let them go. Oh, and the needle's like really light. Oh, it's always ready to skip. Always ready.

Did you ever play gigs where you would put the needle on the record and then someone bumps something or the crowd like jumps and then you're playing, it's going well, it's going well. Everyone's having a good time. Jump around. Jump, jump, jump. Jump around. And the crowd looks at you like you did it now.

Oh, man. Those were the days. Those were really the days. I forgot you DJed.'d you told me how long have you been dj'd so i dj'd for oh goodness i started straight off straight off to high school i um i was making music on a pc so i was playing with everything yeah from mixing the music to fruity loops and you know pro tools and trying to play around with that stuff a friend saw me me doing it. He said, yo, you should come and DJ for people. I was like, I don't do that. He said, no, you do. Just come and do it. And I would sit there. Yo, when I tell you I was the biggest nerd, I would come there with a full PC rig because it's not

sexy like now with a laptop and you've got to, no, I'm talking like a full on, you remember like the, that cream colored screen, big plastic, the big box. I've come there looking like I'm talking like a full on, you remember like the, that cream colored screen. Big plastic. Yeah. The big box. I've come there looking like I'm about to set up somebody's network. I put that stuff down. This is in the hood,

by the way, proper in the hood. And people are looking at me and they, and people would come and be like, where's, who's the DJ? And I'm like, I'm the DJ.

And they go, where's, where's your, where's your tent table? I said, no, I use a computer. And they're like for music and i was like yeah and you could see their faces go like oh this is not gonna end well this is not gonna end well yo and then i would play that that was me and i would just sit there mixing songs for like six hours live really yeah because you could have that much music and i would play everything i would would go, you'd start off with like,

you know, I'd start off with like slow BPMs. I'd be in like the 70s, 80s, warming things up. It'd be like Jagged Edge and all of that. Get to like 94 BPM, move things up. Yeah, and then at some point I'd like warm it up, warm it up. We get to like hip hop. Midnight, we'd start playing house.

Yeah. Try and get to like 120 BPM, you know, get people moving. And then you bring it back down on the other side. I loved it. i loved it what was your dj name i didn't i never got one okay what was yours knuckles nick nick nah so so it started off as uh my mom gave me this one your mom gave you a dj name yeah it was idrico oh that's not bad actually idrico that's not bad really i don't think that's bad. Because I used to play for my parents

whenever they had parties. And I'd play a record. Idrico! I don't think that's bad at all. I thought you were going to be like, DJ Cute Boy. No. DJ My Special Child.

I thought it would be something, like, I don't think of an African mom, but Idrico's dope. Idrico was the first one. And then it went from that to Kipling. Mr. Kipling. Oh, Mr from that to Kipling, Mr. Kipling. Oh,

Mr. Kipling. Yeah, Mr. Kipling. I like that. Kippers. What,

do you have one now? No, it's just Idris. Just Idris is a nice one. No,

just, just Idris. Yeah, just Idris is a great DJ name. It's just Idris on the decks.

I like that. No, no, no. Idris. You're saying just Idris, just saying. Yeah, no, no. Idris. You're saying just Idris. Just saying.

Yeah, just Idris. Don't go anywhere because we got more What Now? after this. We got Idris, the actor, Idris, the DJ, Idris, the, I say this and I don't say this lightly. I think the world builder, you have a statesman vibe to you. And I've seen you with people like you, you want to create, you want to build, you want to grow. grow like when you look at the world you're in now first of all where do you where do you see the states of hollywood and acting and and content and everything right now because it's definitely changing you can't deny it i mean some would even argue you're the last um you know the last of the

of the superstars of like the real Hollywood, you know. No, no, really. It's changing, I think. It's becoming a lot more niche. And you could see at the SAG Awards people talking about this. People saying, you know, I played this role. I got to do that. This is what my dream was.

This is how I am. I got to do this for the first time. I got to play this type of character when nobody said I could. What excites you about the industry right now? And where do you still want to see the industry grow and change? You know, our industry has taken on incredible change, shape-shifting over the last, I'd say, 10 years. And it sort of began really slowly

with this conversation around diversity, around our societies looking like the TV shows we were watching and seeing that it wasn't. And then peeling the onion back even further, seeing that there wasn't very much equality within it behind the scenes. So, you know, the gender debate. Yeah. that there wasn't very much equality within it behind the scenes. So, you know, the gender debate springing into action, Me Too and all this.

So over the last 10 years, we've seen an industry that's gone through, I think, a very healthy health check. You know what I mean? Checking itself. You know what I'm saying there's a history that essentially rewarded people for bad behavior suddenly said enough of that in a healthy way okay alongside that though came this sort of interesting expansion with the digital era just more you know i mean i come from a period where in England

there's four or five channels. Yeah. Okay. And you watched one of those five. That was it. That was it. You were lucky if you got cable or Sky TV. Okay, you were lucky.

And then we're in an era now where you literally can watch anything from anywhere in the world on your phone. And what that's done for our industry is expanded it, but also somehow restricted it a little bit. Because the metrics of how you get a show made now are different. Yeah. You know what I'm saying?

It's like, I think that to your point, you know, there's niche micro groups that started to emerge now. So it's very rare now to have one actor be a star for an entire generation. That's, you know, weirdly enough, I feel like Africa is, you know, the continent of Africa still has the opportunity to have the most incredible movie film industry in the world. Your eyes light up when you say that. Oh yeah, man. For real, your eyes. Yeah. I feel like you want to be at the forefront of that. I want to be at the foundation of it. We

want Trevors, we want Idrises, and we want them to be the biggest stars they can be. Because in that part of the world, we haven't had that opportunity. There's 1.4 billion people there and there's 4,000 cinemas. What? How are we getting our stories? You know, I think about our industry with a sort of opto-futurist perspective because as much as I've worked gladly

for 30, 35 years in, you know, in America and England, I've had most incredible opportunities and career. I still think I've got more to offer when I think about Africa. You know, when we saw what happened with the Black Panther and the sort of Afrofuturism world was sort of really exploding, everyone was like, whoa, whoa, what is this? This is incredible.

That was a moment where you're saying, yeah, you know, albeit Marvel, but it was a moment where you're saying, yeah, you know, albeit Marvel, but it was a moment where the world sort of stood up and was like, oh, wait a second, there's African superstars? Yeah, yeah. Wait, there's African sci-fi? What? And just imagine what that could do, you know? And it does make me excited.

What's your dream? I ask everyone on the podcast um what now because i find whenever i meet people um they're always at an inflection point something's about to happen or something has happened and now they're moving on or they're thinking of the next step you are constantly moving towards the next step you know and and in a really peaceful way, I might add, you know, it's, it's always been fun to watch the way, the way you move, you seem both grateful and also still hungry, which is a, which is a hard balance to find. So, so what now, what do you dream of in your world? You know, if you could, if you could wave your magic wand, what would Idris be doing for the next decade? Um, if I could wave my magic wand, it would be, I would be part of the African film industry's growth.

Seeing studios, seeing African streaming companies, seeing producers, you know, live on the international stage while bringing collaborators into the continent i love that as well as sending out stories internationally you know um that would be i would sit as a performer as a director as a producer as a a vessel in that you know in that dream i love that's what i would do i mean you know um i i really appreciate your words man because you say quietly and i take that to mean humbly you know i'm humbly appreciative of the opportunities i have i'm humbly respectful that i've been invited to this Investopia to come and talk about this dream

and that I could possibly raise some partnerships for it. So it's an exciting time. I'm hoping that one day you and me make a movie together. Hey. All right. Real talk. All right. I think that the world should see that.

We can play. It'll be a buddy cop movie. The Two Mandelas. Fraze. I said Fraze Mandela's. Fraze. I said fraze. He also said fraze. What he means is fries. He's saying fraze,

but it's fries. That's a terrible accent. Fraze. Because Mandela never said fries. Oh, man. I can see the movie now. The Two Mandela's.

Fighting crime. We would lock you movie now. Two Mandela's. Fighting crime. We would lock you up, but we believe in freedom. So you can go. Idris Elba. Trevor Noah. Mandela Man 2. I think we could do it. I think we could do it.

Mandela Man 2. I think we should do it. We should have a little writers' room. Yo, man. Thank you so much for joining me thanks for having me man always

anytime anytime What Now With Trevor Noah is produced by Spotify Studios in partnership with Day Zero Productions and Full Wealth 73

the show is executive produced by Trevor Noah Ben Winston Sanaz Yamin and Jody Avigan our The show is executive produced by Trevor Noah, Ben Winston, Sanaz Yamin, and Jody Avigan. Our senior producer is Jess Hackle. Marina Henke is our producer. Music, mixing, and mastering by Hannes Braun. Thank you so much for listening.

Join me next Thursday for another episode of What Now?