ELBA: 'BLACK ROLES ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO GET FOR BRITS'

Last updated: Monday, June 9, 2008

ELBA: 'BLACK ROLES ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO GET FOR BRITS'

Actor IDRIS ELBA has hit out at the lack of opportunities for black English actors - because black film roles are written for American celebrities.

Idris Elba at the 2008 BET Honors held at The Warner Theater. Washington, DC - 12.01.08

The Wire star - who appeared in horror film Prom Night - finds it increasingly difficult to find parts that suit him.

He tells Britain's Empire magazine, "There just aren't that many scripts around that call for an English black guy."

And the Elba often gets mistaken for being a U.S. citizen - even though he originally hails from London.

He adds, "When you play an American for long enough, everyone just assumes you are one. I shot 28 Weeks Later back in England and even they asked me to be American!

"I talked to the extras in my normal voice and they said, 'F**kin 'ell, your English accent's good! I'm like, 'No, you don't get it - I'm from Hackney!''"

Source: WENN

| Monday, June 9, 2008

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ELBA: 'BLACK ROLES ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO GET FOR BRITS'

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