The &34;Luther&34; star confirms he will retire from acting — though perhaps not just yet. Idris Elba reveals what's next: 'Directing allows me to flex slightly different muscles' The &34;Luther&34; star confirms he will retire from acting — though perhaps not just yet. By Raechal Shewfelt :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/RaechalShewfeltauthorphotoc49d3a3b6aa442f588f2bbc0de804e09.jpg) Raechal Shewfelt Raechal Shewfelt is a writer at . She has been working at EW since 2024. Her work has previously appeared on Yahoo and in American Journalism Review and The Shreveport Times.

The "Luther" star confirms he will retire from acting — though perhaps not just yet.

Idris Elba reveals what's next: 'Directing allows me to flex slightly different muscles'

The "Luther" star confirms he will retire from acting — though perhaps not just yet.

By Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt is a writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2024. Her work has previously appeared on Yahoo and in American *Journalism Review* and *The Shreveport Times*.

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December 11, 2025 12:33 a.m. ET

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Idris Elba photographed at the Red Sea International Film Festival 2025 on Dec. 10 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Credit:

Tristan Fewings/Getty

Idris Elba doesn't plan to act forever. The *Luther* star will eventually retire from the craft to direct, he revealed at the 2025 Red Sea International Film Festival on Wednesday.

"I've been acting for a long time. 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." Elba said in a festival Q&A in Saudi Arabia, per *Daily Mail*. "I really enjoy it."

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Elba attended the event to promote *Dust to Dreams*, a short film he directed that features musician Seal. He previously directed the 2018 crime movie *Yardie.*

"I'm hoping that my fan base as an actor isn't mad at me," Elba continued. "Eventually I want to transfer to be a director fully."

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He explained that he was camera on a movie he just completed, called *This Is How It Goes*. He shot his take on the 2005 Neil LaBute play in Ghana.**

Elba's professional credits date back to the mid-'90s. His best-known projects include police drama *Luther* — he was nominated for an acting Emmy four times for the TV version — as well as movies such as *Beasts of No Nation*, *Zootopia*, and the *Thor *franchise.**

'Luther' stars Idris Elba. Des Willie/BBCAmerica

Elba, 53, also told reporters that he feels "like an imposter in the political arena," and he might also want to make his learning on that front a formal process.

"There is a possibility that I may go to school and just study human science, not political science, because I think humans respond to humans regardless of whether it's politics or sports. It's about humans," he said. "I'd like to maybe study that so that I can be more effective when it comes to some of the philanthropy work I've been doing and some of the activism work."**

The self-professed workaholic is expected to return to acting for a second *Luther *movie, according to the *Hollywood Reporter*. Production is scheduled to begin in February.

Elba also confirmed — once again — that he will *not *be taking on the famous part of James Bond.

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Source: Actors

Published: December 11, 2025 at 07:38AM on Source: RED MAG

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