Sierra-Leone- Ghanaian-born British actor Idris Elba has damaged the silence on the viral and ongoing debate trailing the announcement that he’s to play the protagonist Okonkwo in an upcoming sequence adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s novel ‘Issues Fall Aside’.
Elba, who spoke on the African Cinema Summit in Ghana, stated it’s a matter of authenticity and storytelling.
That includes on the panel “The Relevance of Cinema In African Communities” the actor expressed his understanding of Nigerians, particularly the Igbos, doubting his capability to do justice to the position, stating he skilled the identical opposition when he performed Nelson Mandela within the movie, The Lengthy Stroll To Freedom.
“After I performed Nelson Mandela, I used to be very, very nervous. I’m not from the Xhosa tribe.I’m from Sierra Leone and Ghana. Nevertheless, South Africans, particularly the Xhosa tribe, have been very vocal about why this man was taking part in Mandela.
“Nigerians, the Igbo tribe could have a look at me and say, “However this man now, he’s black and he’s from Sierra-Leone. He isn’t Igbo. How is he going to play this?”
“Right here is the factor, although, that is about filmmaking. That is storytelling. We should always all be allowed to inform our tales. We should always. I believe that is vital, particularly within the continent. There was a lot division on our continent that we didn’t put ourselves.
“We all know there are totally different tribes, complexions, hair textures, and so on., however we take into account ourselves Africans. After I see an African workforce taking part in within the World Cup, it doesn’t matter the place they’re from; I help them.
“That is the place the query of authenticity is available in. If I’m going to play that coveted position in ‘Issues Fall Aside’, I shouldn’t be there if I’m not genuine. If I can’t play that character authentically, I shouldn’t do it. But when I can, then I need my Africans to help me.”
