Idris Elba is going easy on nepotism–according to a recent story he shared on The Breakfast Club. While promoting the film Beast as the leading actor, Idris opened up, playing a father on and off the screen. He spoke about a three-week period when his real-life daughter Isan Idris didn’t talk to him. The reason? She didn’t land a role in Beast.
“Interestingly enough, my daughter auditioned for this role. She wants to be an actress and she auditioned and it came down to chemistry in the end,” Idris said. “She’s great, but the relationship in the film and the relationship between my daughter was–the chemistry wasn’t right for the film, weirdly enough.”
The film highlights a widowed father of two daughters who returns to South Africa for healing but ends up being stalked by a blood-thirsty lion. Now playing in theaters, Iyana Halley and Leah Sava Jeffries got the roles of the Idris’ daughters. And, in turn, his real-life daughter didn’t get one of those gigs.
Will Packer Told Isan Elba She Didn’t Get The Role
Will Packer, the producer of Beast, chimed in on Isan’s audition after one of the show hosts asked who delivered the rejection news. Packer admitted to being the bearer and described Isan as his niece.
“That’s like my lil’ niece and she’s amazing. Here’s what I’ll say, I give props to Idris because…you talk about nepotism, like two dads that are like forreal want the best for their kids but are hard on them, Idris Elba and Ice Cube.”
Will explained that Idris gave him the green light to give her a fair audition or “put her through the ropes.” Packer said that Isan got the audition alongside Idris.
“[Idris] was very tough on her. and he said, ‘Listen at the end of the day, we’re going to make the best decision for the movie. I trust you, trust the director Balt. And she was very good, very close.”
In the end, Will said, “some of the nuances of that real-life relationship sometimes doesn’t translate on-screen.”
Isan & Idris Move Past The Moment; Nepotism Convo Goes Viral
Things didn’t stay sour between father and daughter for too long! He said they got through the audition and rejection with Isan moving gracefully.
“…I’m really proud of her to go through that and then not get the role but still come to the premiere.”
During the same time, Idris’ interview got online traction, a similar conversation went viral. Writer and producer Kirk Moore sparked the wave with a tweet.
“I want Black folks to stop thinking nepotism a bad thing. It’s disproportionate because we lack the access. But…if a family member wants to be an actor and they’re good, why wouldn’t I use my connections to get them a gigi? Not everyone NEEDS TO struggle before they make it,” Kirk tweeted.
Kirk spoke about the topic through several tweets–repeatedly emphasizing his disinterest in making things hard for someone trying to break into the industry. By Friday, the tweet above had over 25,000 likes.
Breaking into this industry is hard. Why would I make it harder? Or, why would I want to watch someone squirm and eat Ramen just because I had to? Nah.
— NO! (@KirkWrites79) August 14, 2022
