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Character Idris
Elba Regrets
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By JENNIFER LIND-WESTBROOK
These days, Idris Elba is one of Hollywood's most recognizable faces, thanks to his notable role as Heimdall in the "Thor" films and "Avengers: Infinity War," as well as Commandant in "Beasts of No Nation." Elba is still mainly seen in blockbuster films like "The Suicide Squad," but he has mixed feelings about playing one popular TV character.
In three seasons of the hit HBO crime drama "The Wire," Idris Elba portrayed Russell "Stringer" Bell, the right-hand man of drug dealer Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris). However, Elba isn't totally happy about Stringer's popularity among fans, even though public perception of his role didn’t bother him while he was on the show.
During an interview, Elba said: "We're all idolizing Stringer Bell, but who are we really idolizing? Is it okay to pump a community full of heroin, but because you're smart at it that makes you cool?" Elba went on to say that there's no such thing as a "successful" drug dealer because eventually, they "either get shot or go to jail."