Good news for Idris Elba and Luther fans: He’s coming back. Bad news: It’s just for one night. But a cannibal is involved.
BBC America announced Thursday that Elba will return as the tormented London police detective John Luther for a three-hour movie special, Luther. (9-11 pm ET) on Dec. 17.
Elba, the Golden Globe-winner who’s gone Hollywood in a big way — lots of fans think he should be the next James Bond — has been unforgettable as the self-destructive detective chief inspector who constantly skirts the line in tracking surprisingly plentiful psychopaths lurking in London’s grittier precincts.
BBC America describes the movie’s plot as Luther’s epiphany: He can’t walk away, much as he would like to leave the darker side of humanity behind.
His chance for a normal life is thwarted when he’s drawn into a case involving a cannibalistic serial killer who “delivers a devastating blow that not only pulls him out of seclusion but pushes him closer to the edge than he’s ever been,” according to the BBC America press release.
Luther is a guy who’s been close to the edge many times. He lost his wife to a brutal murderer. His colleagues turned on him in a witch hunt. His friend and loyal sergeant died in his arms after getting caught in a crossfire. Luther even tried to forge a happy ending by hooking up with Alice Morgan, a beautiful, terrifyingly smart and amoral serial killer.
Still, he’s drawn back to the fray, lured by the gruesome clues left by a body-part-munching killer. But Luther’s demons continue to stalk him, not to mention the ghosts from his past. Isolated and even more volatile, Luther struggles to keep it together.
“I think Luther goes back just because he can’t stay away from it for too long,” says Elba in a statement. “Ultimately, because he’s a protector, (he) just wants to be able to fix what he can see other people won’t be able to …”
Elba, 43, was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his role as Luther, and won a Golden Globe in 2013. He also was honored at the 42nd NAACP Awards for outstanding actor in a television movie, miniseries or dramatic special.
Lately, he’s appeared or is due to appear in several movies, including Beasts of No Nation, Star Trek Beyond, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Zootopia. He’s also voiced roles in Finding Dory and The Jungle Book.
Source: USAToday