Idris Elba Planning Move to Africa to Boost Film Industry.

Elba (right) attended the US Africa Leaders Summit in Washington DC in 2022. Courtesy image.

British actor Idris Elba has revealed plans to relocate to Africa within the next decade as part of his mission to support the continent’s growing movie industry.

The 52-year-old star of the popular series The Wire shared his vision in a recent interview with the BBC, expressing a deep connection to Africa through his family roots—his mother is from Ghana and his father from Sierra Leone.

Elba is already involved in major initiatives to develop the film industry across the continent. He has begun projects to establish film studios in Zanzibar, a group of islands off the coast of Tanzania, and in Accra, the capital of Ghana. These studios are part of his broader goal to help Africans tell their own stories through film.

“I would certainly consider settling down here; not even consider, it’s going to happen,” Elba said while speaking at an industry meeting in Accra. He emphasized that his commitment to the continent’s film industry requires a physical presence, stating, “I think [I’ll move] in the next five, 10 years, God willing. I’m here to bolster the film industry—that is a 10-year process. I won’t be able to do that from overseas. I need to be in-country, on the continent.”

While Elba has clear plans to immerse himself in African life, he remains flexible about where he will settle, in line with his Pan-African vision. “I’m going to live in Accra, I’m going to live in Freetown [Sierra Leone’s capital], I’m going to live in Zanzibar,” he explained, adding that his goal is to be where stories are being told across the continent.

Ultimately, Elba hopes to create and produce films from his own studio in Accra, marking a new chapter in his career and reinforcing his commitment to Africa’s cultural and creative growth.

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