British actor Idris Elba is planning to open a film studio in Tanzania.
The 50-year-old Hollywood star, whose filmography boasts of titles such as ‘The Wire’ and ‘Luther’, has already held initial talks with President Samia Suluhu Hassan, according to the president’s team.
This is after Elba and his wife, Sabrina Elba, met President Suluhu on the side-lines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, earlier this month.
“The president met with Idris Elba and his wife Sabrina, they are keen to invest in a film studio in Tanzania,” Tanzania’s director of presidential communications, Zuhura Yunus, was quoted by local media as telling journalists on Monday.
She added that if the project goes through, it will be a hub for nurturing talent from not just Kenya’s southern neighbour but the larger East and Central Africa regions.
“The talks are in the initial stage but if everything goes well then the studio will benefit not only Tanzania but east and central Africa,” said Yunus.
Elba’s mother and father hail from Ghana and Sierra Leone respectively, and he is estimated to be worth around Ksh.4.9 billion ($40 million).
The Time Magazine ‘100 Most Influential People in the World’ list honoree has previously spoken about his plan to not only to make more films in Africa, but work to help develop the film industry on the continent.
His 2022 film, ‘Beast’, for instance, was entirely shot in South Africa, and has said he wants to pave the way for more major films to be made on the continent.
“I’m really keen on the development of Africa. My parents come from Africa and more than anywhere in the world, I feel like that continent deserves some real tender care and love and thought,” Elba told South Africa’s SA People in August last year.
“Young Africans view me as a leader or a beacon. And I feel like I could bring something. So I’m keen to bring what I’ve learned in media and amplify it in Africa,” he added at the time.