THE LOSERS
An Interview with Idris Elba

By Wilson Morales

April 19, 2010

From the small screen (HBO’s The Wire) to the big screen, Idris Elba is has made a smooth transition in Hollywood and has a carved out some huge film credits (’28 Weeks Later,’ ‘American Gangster,’ ‘This Christmas,’ and ‘Obsessed’) along the way.

Coming up for the London, England native are several projects that will grab some global attention. First up is the comic book adaptation of ‘The Losers,’ where he plays Roque, a member of an elite Special Forces squad who were left for dead but are looking for vengeance and freedom.

Joining Elba in the action film are Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Columbus Short, Chris Evans, Jason Patric, Oscar Jaenada, and Holt McCallany.

In speaking with Blacfilm.com, Elba talked about his role in the film as well as his other projects, which includes ‘Thor,’ ‘Legacy,’ and ‘Luther.’

What was the draw for you to do ‘The Losers?’

Idris Elba: This character wasn’t written for me or an African American character and that doesn’t make a difference in the script. He’s still who he is. The draw was the character arc. The guy starts off as one character and in the end, he’s completely someone else. He really is night and day and just the chance to play that, there’s multi-layers with this character. You are stepping into an action film that has integrity and real characters.

What was the most exciting thing about shooting this film? IE: The action sequences and the opportunity to do some stunts were great. That was cool. In particular, I did a lot of fight scenes with Jeffrey Dean Morgan and I had a good time doing that. Roque has a scar on his face. Is there a back-story to that? IE: It’s just a battle wound, no real story.

The chemistry between the characters is genuine. How was it working with the cast while filming in Puerto Rico?

IE: It was easy, so relatively easy. There were no egos on the set and that makes a big difference when you are working with an ensemble. If the ensemble doesn’t work because of egos, then it shows on the screen. Everyone is at the point of their careers where they haven’t learn to develop egos, and that’s good, because we are still very much down to earth folks.

Off the set when the film is over, people stayed connected with each other. Columbus (Short) and Jeffrey Dean and all of them I speak occasionally. We text each other and see how each is now that the film is complete, we don’t have the luxury to hang out.

What did you get from working with director Sylvain White? IE: Sylvain is a visionary director where he sees the details of the film and that’s very important to him. At the same time, he had plenty of time to work on character development. We sat down at the round table and got a lot of notes on how we say this and how we sat that. Sylvain also wanted us to be in great shape. Did you try to do anything different from what written in the comic books? IE: No, I didn’t try to do anything, but I am going to be deemed as different. A lot of it was in the writing, but the story arc was from two graphic references.

How do you balance the big and small films that you are doing?

IE: It balances itself out. The films that are bigger, they tend to do the very same thing that we are doing now; which is, you asking me about the process of making the film and how it’s put together. When I get the opportunity to make smaller films, I put my ass into it. It’s important to me that that world is open to me. Of course, I want to pay the bills, but I also want to see myself in a lot more independent films.

Where did your love for comics come from? IE: I was a comic reader when I was in school. When I left school I used to read Spiderman, Superman, and I loved the pictures and how the imagination takes you to different places. With ‘The Losers,’ this is a film that takes you there. You could this with your family and you can watch this by yourself, but it will take you on a journey. That’s my main attraction to it.

You then will be jumping into another comic book film, ‘Thor.’ Did you ever see yourself in that Marvel film?

IE: No, I didn’t. Marvel came along and I was like, “Really? Thor? How are you going to fit me into it?” The character that I play, Heimdall, is a big character that is integral to the story, but very different from ‘Legacy’ and very different from ‘The Losers.’ I’m still shooting ‘Thor’ so I can’t say much on that yet but it’s a good film and going to be an epic.

Another film that you completed, ‘Legacy,’ will be shown this month at the Tribeca Film Festival. How excited are you for that? IE: I’m super proud. This is a film that not only has me acting in it but also got me involved in the creative process. By being on the productive sides of things, I’m been privy and able to help structure its character. It’s very dramatic. You have a six part series coming to BBC called ‘Luther.’ IE: Yes, it’s a detective series like ‘Cracker.’ He’s very efficient and gets the job done. At the same time, he has a personal horrible life which dictates some of his moods. It was a tough shoot. I shot for nineteen weeks and took two weeks off and I was in every scene.

How happy are you to be the ambassador for this year’s American Black Film Festival?

IE: I love Miami. It’s home for me as well. I’m excited to be there and see folks come out. I really want to encourage people if they are film lovers but also if they are filmmakers and bring your checkbooks.

When do you find time to DJ?

IE: That’s a night owl thing. I say to my team that we are open 24 hours, whether they like it or not. We do interviews and films during the day and music at night. We get tired, but we don’t stop.

THE LOSERS OPENS ON APRIL 23, 2010