Idris Elba Says He Plans To Retire From Acting and Go Full-Time Director
If you’re a fan of Idris Elba, you might want to savor every new project he steps into because his time on screen could be winding down.
During a recent screening of his new short film Dust To Dreams, which he directed, Elba opened up about a major shift he hopes to make in his career. The beloved actor is ready to trade in the spotlight for the director’s chair.
“I’m hoping that my fan base as an actor isn’t mad at me, but eventually I want to transfer to being a director fully. I’ve been acting for a long time,” explained the actor via The Daily Mail. “I love it still, but I think directing allows me to flex slightly different muscles and just be a part of the set in a different way. I really enjoy it.”
It’s a big step but not one he’s jumping into without experience. Before Dust To Dreams Elba made his directorial debut with the 2018 crime drama Yardie which featured Ami Ameen Sheldon Shepherd and an appearance from Stephen Graham.
Since then he’s stayed extremely busy as an actor, and it currently starring in Apple TV’s thriller series Hijack which returns for a second season in January.
He will also be back on the big screen in 2026 as Man At Arms in the new Masters of the Universe movie fighting alongside Nicholas Galitzine’s He Man. Elba’s acting slate is still stacked, but he’s ready to start steering his career toward storytelling from behind the lens.
It will be exciting to see what movies he will craft as a filmmaker when he decided to make that jump.