Idris Elba almost didn’t make it to the premiere of his film Nelson Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom.
Idris, who plays Mandela in the film, was on a plane getting ready to fly to a press conference in Johannesburg about the film when he suffered an asthma attack and had to be taken off and rushed to hospital in the UK.
Idris told Sky News the asthma attack was a “very scary moment”.
“A doctor on the plane helped me through it. Thankfully I am here,” he said.
The Wire star has previously spoken of how he got into character for the movie, spending a night on Robben Island, locked in a cell next to the one where Mandela was jailed for 18 years.
‘It was a shit hole,’ he said. ‘I had a thin blanket for a mattress, and that’s all there was between me and the concrete floor. They gave me a bowl. I had no water, nothing to drink at all. I was wearing my sweats and whatnot. I had two iPads to document myself and a cell phone.
‘I slept for about an hour in total. There were ghosts there – of course, there were – because people had died there. I woke in the night, and a massive cold thing hit my face, almost like cold water …it was obviously a spirit.
‘The wind made the cell bars make this ringing sound that echoed throughout the building. They clanged all night. I was on my own, but I wasn’t alone.
‘Later, every time I did the cell scenes in the film, I thought of that night. It wasn’t pretend for me.’
At the premiere, the film’s stars were joined by several of Mandela’s friends and family, including his second wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, who sat next to Idris during speeches at a champagne reception.
The 41-year-old actor said: “What an amazing turnout, we’re very proud. This story is so much bigger than me than any of us, and when we were given the task to bring this story to life, it was under the guidance of Justin (director Justin Chadwick) and Anant (producer Anant Singh).
“I’ve never worked with such a committed set of actors. In true spirit, these are my comrades.”
It’s a busy month for the actor as the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Los Angeles (BAFTA Los Angeles) will honour him with the LA Britannia Humanitarian Award on 9 November.
Nelson Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom premiered in Toronto in September and is due for release in the UK on 3 January 2014.
