Idris Elba accused of not being black enough by BBC Diversity Chief. Did she expose Hollywood hypocrisy or this fake outrage? Must be a slow news day is people are complaining that a BBC Exec says Idris Elba’s role not Black enough in the BBC series Luther? What is your reaction to this Idris Elba ain’t Black enough in Luther BBC TV show news? Let me know your reaction in the comments!
Idris Elba’s portrayal of DCI John Luther in the hit BBC crime drama Luther “doesn’t feel authentic” because has no Black friends and doesn’t eat Caribbean food in the series, a diversity and representation manager at the public broadcaster said Wednesday.
BBC’s diversity manager Miranda Wayland discussed diversity in television and specifically Luther in a prerecorded session for digital MIPTV. Wayland praised the show for featuring a “really strong, Black character lead” but said it was “superficially diverse.”
“When it first came out everybody loved the fact that Idris Elba was in there — a really strong, Black character lead,” Wayland is quoted as saying. “We all fell in love with him. Who didn’t, right? But after you got into about the second series you got kind of like, OK, he doesn’t have any Black friends, he doesn’t eat any Caribbean food, this doesn’t feel authentic.”
She added that television bosses at the BBC and elsewhere must ensure that Black characters are supported by an environment and culture that is “absolutely reflective” of their background.
Luther was created and is written by Neil Cross, a white man, and stars Elba as an on-the-edge, relentless and ingenious London detective who solves horrific crimes by bending the rules. First airing in 2010, the show has run for five seasons and scored a string of Emmy and Golden Globe nominations, with Elba winning a SAG award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie in 2016.
