Idris Elba, a well-known British actor, has said that before the racism controversy broke out, he was interested in playing the legendary James Bond, the main character of the well-known British fictitious franchise.
The 50-year-old actor shared his opinions on the topic while appearing as a guest on the most recent edition of the Smartless podcast, which is co-hosted by Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett.
Elba acknowledged how thrilling it was for him to hear that he may be chosen to play James Bond.
Reflecting on the situation, Elba said,
“The truth is, I was super complemented for a long time about this [playing the James Bond role]. I was like, ‘This is crazy! James Bond?’
“We are all actors and we understand that role. It’s one of those coveted roles. Being asked to be James Bond was like, ‘Okay, you’ve sort of reached the pinnacle.’ That is one of those things the whole world has a vote in.
“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. Those that weren’t happy about the idea made the whole thing disgusting because it became about race.”