*Idris Elba is speaking out about the online criticism he faced after telling Esquire U.K. that he stopped describing himself as a “Black actor” because it limits the roles he’s offered.
“Me saying I don’t like to call myself a Black actor is my prerogative. That’s me, not you,” he told The Guardian in a new interview.
“So for you to turn around and say to me, I’m ‘denying my Blackness.’ On what grounds? Did you hear that? Where am I denying it? And what for? It’s just stupid. Whatever.”
The Luther actor said his initial comments were “overly scrutinized, taken out of context,” and “thrown into some sort of bullsh*t, zeitgeisty social media argument.”
READ MORE: Idris Elba Clarifies ‘Black Actor’ Comment After Social Media Backlash
There isn’t a soul on this earth that can question whether I consider myself a BLACK MAN or not. Being an ‘actor’ is a profession, like being an ‘architect’ ,they are not defined by race. However, If YOU define your work by your race, that is your Perogative. Ah lie?
— Idris Elba (@idriselba) February 11, 2023
Last month, Elba told Esquire UK that people are “obsessed with race”, and that being described as a Black actor “put [him] in a box”.
“If we spent half the time not talking about the differences but the similarities between us, the entire planet would have a shift in the way we deal with each other,” he added.
“As humans, we are obsessed with race. And that obsession can really hinder people’s aspirations, hinder people’s growth,” said Elba.
“Racism should be a topic for discussion, sure. Racism is very real. But from my perspective, it’s only as powerful as you allow it to be,” he said.
He continued, “I stopped describing myself as a Black actor when I realized it put me in a box. We’ve got to grow. We’ve got to. Our skin is no more than that: It’s just skin. Rant over.”
The comments caused an uproar online and Elba took to Twitter to address the negative reaction.
“There isn’t a soul on this earth that can question whether I consider myself a BLACK MAN or not,” he wrote. “Being an ‘actor’ is a profession, like being an ‘architect.’ They are not defined by race. However, if YOU define your work by your race, that is your [sic] perogative.”
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