Is there a RocknRolla reunion in the works? It would appear so, now that an individual familiar with Guy Ritchie’s upcoming medieval epic Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur has confirmed that British thesp Idris Elba is in talks to join the cast.
Elba, a Golden Globe winner and three-time Emmy nominee for his role as the tormented DCI John Luther on the BBC crime series Luther, may play the knight Bedivere, described as “Arthur’s father’s right-hand man who takes it upon himself to train the young warrior for battle as he learns his true destiny.”
Playing a mentor is nothing new for Elba, seeing as he did the same for Rinko Kikuchi’s Mako Mori as Stacker Pentecost in Pacific Rim. Still, it’s exciting to see the actor land another big role in a major blockbuster project. Ever since his turn as Stringer Bell on HBO’s The Wire, Elba’s star has been steadily rising. Though his starring part on Luther is probably what the actor is best known for, he’s also appeared as Nelson Mandela in the biopic Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, the powerful Heimdall in Thor and its sequel, and Captain Janek in Prometheus.
This fall, he’ll be stretching his dramatic muscles to play a psychopath in No Good Deed. Elba also has roles in the drama Second Coming and action thriller The Gunman both in the can. It may be a while before he can commit to Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur, seeing as the actor also has major parts in Beasts of No Nation, Alive Alone, The Jungle Book (in which he voices Shere Khan) and Bastille Day lined up. You certainly can’t claim that the star is resting on his laurels.
If Elba is to take on the role of Bedivere, he’ll have to fit it in somewhere soon though, likely before Bastille Day. Warner Bros. has already set Ritchie’s medieval epic for release on July 22th, 2016, so stay tuned for more info.
