Like all the best artists, Idris Elba can surprise you when you least expect it. The British actordirector-DJ is sitting in front of me, espousing on his love of all things literary over his morning coffee. “I love poetry,” he insists when we meet in a suite in Cannes’ Majestic Hotel. “I wouldn’t say I’m an anorak for poets. I couldn’t tell you, ‘Oh, this one said that.’ But I love the art of words and forming sentences and beautifying language.”
To look at—6ft 2in tall, six-pack, tattoos—you’d think this 50-year-old spends more time in the gym than the library. He’s frequently played the tough guy in shows like , “a massive changing point in my life”, when he excelled as drug kingpin Russell “Stringer” Bell. Or movies like and . But look further and you’ll also find him giving a soulful.
