Elba was recently on the Mitch Albom radio show promoting his new film. It's a mark of how good an actor is that you're surprised when you hear their natural voice. Elba has a very pronounced English accent and was making light of how relatively easy it is for English actors to pick up American accents.

Idris Elba is in a hotel suite at the MGM Detroit Grand talking up his new movie "Takers" as part of his first extensive movie publicity tour.

And if the 37-year-old British actor has his way, it will be his last, too.

"I'm not good at it," says Elba, who by the time he hit Detroit earlier this month had already visited Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Miami, and still needed to travel to Las Vegas and Atlanta.

"I'm honest and I speak openly about my films, but I'm tedious to the process, y'know. It really wears me out, because it's not what I do. I'm just an actor. I'm not the best sales engine."

But he was convinced to go on the road and talk up "Takers" by Quentin Tarantino, who relayed to Elba that he spent a year on the road promoting "Pulp Fiction" and created a lot of goodwill in the community as a result.

"It really translates to the audience," says Elba, best known for his role as streetwise businessman Stringer Bell on HBO's "The Wire." "They end up going, 'Hey, he was in Detroit, he told this story, I'm going to spend the time watching his movie.' It makes a difference."

Elba's in a position in his career where the publicity might soon start coming to him. In addition to the slick heist film "Takers," which opens Friday, Elba has been working steadily on television, including roles on NBC's "The Office," Showtime's "The Big C" and the BBC's "Luther."

Next summer, he has a role in the should-be-smash "Thor," which he hopes busts open his career to the big leagues.
For now, Elba is starring in "Takers," which co-stars Paul Walker, Hayden Christensen, T.I. and Chris Brown. They're a tightknit crew of bank robbers who specialize in high-profile jobs, and are recruited into a final big score by a former associate.

"It's a good heist film, man. It just takes it back to that genre," says Elba, the tattoos on his right arm peaking out from under the edge of his long-sleeve shirt. "Without dating itself, it has given us this kind of old-school film. The guys are slick, charismatic, dangerous, and at the same time they get the job done. These guys are robbing banks with guns; no one does that anymore. They hack you. Y'know what I mean?"

The film features several audacious action sequences, but Elba's character is the heart of the film. He's forced to deal with his junkie sister, played by Academy Award nominee Marianne Jean-Baptiste, who bounces in and out of rehab throughout the film.

"I wanted to have some sort of reality, some real story to throw into this man's world while he's robbing banks," says Elba, who splits his time between London and Miami. "These guys are all in their suits, with girls in Jacuzzis, but what's really going on? It was designed to give my character a little more depth."

Full Article