The only really crucial role that Idris Elba ever needs to occupy is not that of a suave, martini-downing spy, but a rough-around-the-edges detective. Less black tie, more bar brawl. Good news, then: Luther is back, not with another series, but an actual film. Luther: The Fallen Sun (out now on Netflix) finds the hardened detective fallen on, well, hard times. He’s locked away in prison, while an endlessly cruel and very well-resourced villain (played by Andy Serkis) wreaks havoc across the UK.
In the run-up to the film’s release, Elba joined Esquire to take part in an episode of Freeze Frame, breaking down pivotal scenes from Luther’s latest outing – from an incendiary prison break-out sequence to a tattoo parlour chase. (If you take one piece of advice from this, it should be: do not let Luther near a tattoo gun.) What’s going through Luther’s head? What was it like working with Serkis? How, exactly, do you manage to block out Piccadilly Circus for filming? In a cavernous West London film studio, an animated and straight-talking Elba answered all this, as engaged with the cult of Luther as much as any feverish fan. James who?
Henry Wong is a senior culture writer at Esquire, working across digital and print. He covers film, television, books, and art for the magazine, and also writes profiles.
