Idris Elba joins WIRED to answer his most searched questions from Google. What are all the different iterations of his DJ names? What football team does he support? How did he get invited on 'The Office?' The actor answers all these questions and more!Director: Jackie PhillipsDirector of Photography: Dominik CzaczykEditor: Louville MooreTalent: Idris ElbaCreative Producer: Justin WolfsonLine Producer: Joseph BuscemiAssociate Producer: Paul Gulyas; Brandon WhiteProduction Manager: Peter BrunetteProduction & Equipment Manager: Kevin BalashTalent Booker: Lauren MendozaCamera Operator: Shay Eberle-GunstSound Mixer: Kari BarberProduction Assistant: Lauren Boucher; Brock SpitaelsPost Production Supervisor: Christian OlguinPost Production Coordinator: Ian BryantSupervising Editor: Doug LarsenAssistant Editor: Fynn Lithgow
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TechTranscript
00:00 My name is Idris Elba and this is the Wired Autocomplete interview.
00:06 I paused because I've done this before, so, you know.
00:13 Thank you.
00:17 What does Idris Elba eat?
00:20 I eat a lot of protein. Eggs. I like cereal.
00:23 Like, uh, bran flakes with raisins in it.
00:27 That's my favorite.
00:29 And I eat other stuff as well.
00:31 Alright?
00:32 Did Idris Elba play soccer?
00:35 Yeah.
00:36 I actually played football.
00:37 We call it football in our part of the world.
00:39 I played from the time I was probably about five all the way through high school and all of that.
00:44 I played into my 20s and Sunday League.
00:47 It was actually a rough league where people get their legs broken all the time.
00:50 But I did play soccer.
00:52 Who is Idris Elba in The Wire?
00:56 I played a character called Stringer Bell, who is essentially the right-hand man to Avon Barksdale,
01:04 one of the most powerful drug dealers in The Wire.
01:09 Little known fact is that Stringer Bell is actually based on someone that is real.
01:14 Who is Idris Elba in Thor?
01:18 In Thor, I play a character called Heimdall.
01:22 Heimdall is a very famous Asgardian.
01:26 There was a lot of controversy when I got the role because I'm black and stuff.
01:29 It was a bit of shit, but anyway, it's fine.
01:32 We got over that.
01:32 Thank you.
01:34 Let's do some more.
01:36 What is Idris Elba DJ name?
01:40 When I first started DJing, they used to call me Mr. Kipling.
01:44 That got shortened to Kippers.
01:47 When I went to America, I was Big Driss.
01:49 My mom used to call me DJ Idrico.
01:52 And then I went through a phase of just being Idris Elba.
01:55 And now people just call me Idris.
01:57 So my actual DJ, if you go to my Spotify, it's just Idris.
02:01 And that happened recently, by the way.
02:02 What does Idris Elba drive?
02:05 I drive a motorcycle, an electric one.
02:07 E-Evolution, I think it's called.
02:09 It's a BMW.
02:10 Super quick.
02:11 Rapid.
02:12 If you've ever seen my film Hobbs and Shaw, I play a character called Brixton Law in it.
02:17 I ride a motorcycle in that.
02:19 It is faster than that bike.
02:20 But I also drive a electric car called an EQC.
02:24 I have orange leather interior, just so you know.
02:28 What football team does Idris Elba support?
02:34 I support the one and only Arsenal football team.
02:38 The best football team in England.
02:41 The only red team that you ever need to know about.
02:46 That is the Gunners.
02:47 Back in the day, I mean, Arsenal went through a really bad time.
02:50 We weren't on a winning streak.
02:52 But now, we're top of the league, baby.
02:56 No need to Google that anymore.
02:58 Hey, here we go.
02:59 What kind of coat does Idris Elba wear in Luther?
03:04 Actually, the original Luther TV show, right?
03:06 Back in 2011, I was wearing a Paul Smith tweed coat, okay?
03:12 It's a very specific Scottish weave.
03:17 And Paul Smith made only a few of them.
03:20 But the original, original coat got thrown into the Thames River.
03:24 And so, no spoilers.
03:27 All right.
03:28 Smooth.
03:32 How did Idris Elba get on The Office?
03:37 The truth is, I got on The Office because the wire, quite frankly.
03:42 The writers of BJ Novak, big fan of The Wire.
03:49 And invited me to come on to The Office.
03:55 As funny as I am, I don't get to do much comedy.
03:59 And I was sort of invited.
04:00 I was beside myself that I got to play with this really funny sitcom.
04:04 So, that's how I got on The Office.
04:07 Can Idris Elba...
04:08 I bet this says "sing."
04:10 Can Idris Elba switch accents?
04:12 No, I'm really bad at it.
04:15 Like, I've done it before with actors that can do accents really quick and just switch.
04:19 And I just sound shockingly bad.
04:21 Something like Scottish.
04:22 I mean, Scottish is so terrible.
04:26 No, I'm not even going to try.
04:28 Was Idris Elba in Fast and the Furious?
04:32 I was in Hobbs and Shaw, which is a Fast and the Furious franchise.
04:38 Here's a question for you.
04:40 Which one was Hobbs and which one was Shaw?
04:42 Either way, I was in it.
04:44 I played Brixton Law.
04:46 Okay, was Idris Elba in Star Trek?
04:49 I was.
04:50 I played a character called Kroll.
04:53 He's from a different universe.
04:54 And every day I had to get up around two o'clock in the morning, go in and put on this prosthetic
05:01 full head and had it on all day.
05:04 And at the end of my day, they had to peel it off really gently, really gently.
05:10 But on the last day of a sort of seven-week shoot, I filmed myself.
05:15 [imitates explosion]
05:18 And it was horrific to watch because I pulled it off my face.
05:22 And it nearly pulled my eyebrows off, which was no fun.
05:25 So here it is.
05:27 All right.
05:27 Thank you very much.
05:28 Smoother.
05:31 Does Idris Elba have tattoos?
05:34 Yes, I have many tattoos.
05:36 I have some on my hands.
05:37 You can see there.
05:37 Different parts of my life.
05:39 Sayings, meanings.
05:41 The first line of my favorite song on this arm, which is a song called "Distrained" by
05:46 a band called Culture.
05:48 And my kids' names are on here and here.
05:50 And I have another saying here.
05:53 I've got tats.
05:54 I love tats.
05:55 Does Idris Elba take requests?
05:58 I do not take requests while I'm DJing.
06:01 I preset my playlist.
06:03 You know, I sort of put together what I think I'm going to play.
06:06 But I would take requests if I was at a party where people could come to the DJ and be like,
06:12 "Yo, have you got this?"
06:13 I would take requests, but I don't usually.
06:16 Does Idris Elba play video games?
06:18 I do.
06:19 I am a gamer for sure, for sure.
06:21 I play what was formerly known as FIFA.
06:24 I play FC 24.
06:26 I've been playing that game for 30 years.
06:29 Since FIFA 95, like the original, original Sega version.
06:35 I love that game.
06:37 I also play Street Fighter.
06:40 I love driving games.
06:41 I mean, rally games are bonkers.
06:43 Like, they're really difficult.
06:45 But I love a rally game.
06:47 Yeah, I'm a gamer.
06:48 Does Idris Elba make music?
06:51 I do make music.
06:52 I first started DJing, which was when I was 14 years old, okay?
06:55 And then when acting started, I couldn't DJ as much.
06:59 So I decided that I wanted to learn how to make music.
07:02 So I went off and bought my first drum machine, which was a...
07:06 Here's one for the nerds.
07:07 Roland Groovebox.
07:09 And then I bought an MPC.
07:11 And then I bought an MC-303.
07:14 Yeah, baby.
07:16 I make music.
07:16 And now I have like a little bit of a production team.
07:19 So I'll start the ideas off, and then my production team will help me finish her.
07:23 Boom.
07:25 I'm gonna place this one on gently.
07:29 Is Idris Elba a rapper?
07:32 I wouldn't consider myself a rapper.
07:34 Let's just put it that way.
07:35 I just like making songs where I rap on.
07:37 My daughter's 22.
07:38 She's like, "Dad, you need to quit."
07:39 But that's not true, actually.
07:40 She likes my music.
07:42 But thank you for Googling that.
07:43 If you have Googled that, big up.
07:45 Is Idris Elba British?
07:47 Yes.
07:51 I actually don't drink tea.
07:53 I do drink chamomile tea and mint tea, but I'm not a cup of tea bloke.
07:57 But I am British.
07:58 It's born there, man.
08:00 East London.
08:01 Is Idris Elba Knuckles' voice?
08:04 Yes, Idris Elba does play Knuckles.
08:07 The fans really love Knuckles.
08:09 And I've had so much fun playing him.
08:11 So I'm very proud.
08:13 All right, here's the last one.
08:14 Is Idris Elba knighted?
08:17 No, I am not knighted.
08:18 However, I did receive my OBE, which is an outstanding honorary.
08:28 That the queen gave to me.
08:30 It is quite a special thing.
08:33 Just so you know, I got an honorary doctorate degree from Ravenscroft University, which I'm
08:37 really proud of.
08:38 So my sign off on my emails is D-R-I-E-O-B-E.
08:45 Yeah, baby.
08:46 Thank you so much.
08:47 I had such an amazing time.
08:49 Please keep Googling me.
08:50 Thank you, guys.
08:51 I'm giddy.
08:52 Idris Elba out.
08:56 [MUSIC PLAYING]