Idris Elba is clearing up the James Bond rumors once and for all.
The 53-year-old actor is currently promoting his new movie Masters of the Universe and spoke to People on Monday (May 18) during the Los Angeles premiere.
Asked how he felt about his name consistently getting “thrown out” during the 007 discussions, Idris chose that moment to make a clarification.
“My name’s not getting thrown out, no way,” Idris replied. “They’re going younger. And I wish them all the luck of the world. I can’t wait — it’s going to be amazing.”
“I’m honestly not in the race ever. I wasn’t in the race in the first place,” he added.
The Wire star has talked about the Bond rumors in the past, like when he visited the Smartless podcast co-hosted by Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes in 2023.
At the time, he explained what made him go from “super complimented” by the rumors to feeling a sense of frustration.
“We’re all actors and we understand that that role is one of those sort of coveted types. It’s like being named Sexiest Man,” he said.
“Essentially, it was a huge compliment that every corner of the world — except for some corners, which we will not talk about — were really happy about the idea that I could be considered,” Idris explained. “Those that weren’t happy about the idea made the whole thing disgusting and off-putting, because it became about race. It became about nonsense, and I got the brunt of it.”
In case you missed it, Idris has also been confirmed to return and reprise his role for Extraction 3 alongside Chris Hemsworth.
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