Idris Elba has shared a surprise admission about The Wire, which is commonly regarded as the greatest TV show of all time.
The actor’s breakout role arrived in David Simon’s HBO series and, before the Luther star became a household name, he was so convincing as the shrewd drug lord Russell "Stringer" Bell that many viewers assumed he was American.
Many consider The Wire to be one of the greatest series of all time, but the actor is not able to concur with this claim as he has never seen a single episode – and never will.
“If I’m really honest, I didn’t watch The Wire,“ Elba told Amy Poehler on her Good Hang podcast ahead of the release of new action comedy Heads of State.
He said he “feels bad” about this confession, adding: “It’s not that I’m not a fan of it – I was there. I made a show that was, you know, so intense and so real, so important, even though we didn’t realise it. I didn’t realise the importance of the show while making it.”
Elba said he feels ostracised from the show’s fandom as he “didn’t participate in its celebration as a viewer”, stating: “I feel a little bit outside of the club.”
The actor then went on to explain why he will never watch the series: “It’s more that I feel the presence of it all, my life since The Wire in terms of its impact.
“So to me, it was almost a bit like I was Stringer Bell. I’m not Stringer Bell, but I also feel like when Stringer Bell died, there was a part of me that died with that character. It’s weird for me to go back and watch it.”
*Spoilers follow – you have been warned*
The show’s creator David Simon, previously revealed that Elba “was not happy” when his character was killed off as “people were really starting to discover what a leading man he was”.
“When he read the script, he was like, ‘Man, I can’t believe I’m leaving the show,’” Simon recalled to Associated Press.
“And I remember talking with him over the script and saying, ‘Idris, you’re going to have movie roles. You’re going to be an A-lister. People are going to get a load of this death, they’re going to acquire this story arc in retrospect – this is your calling card, man. You’re going to do fine.’”
After The Wire, Elba, assisted by the success of BBC drama Luther, went on to become one of Britain’s biggest stars, and his credits include Thor, The Suicide Squad, Prometheus and Pacific Rim.
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