Idris Elba’s Greatest Role Is At The Top Of The Streaming Chart
Idris Elba's Luther: The Fallen Sun is the #1 most-watched movie on Netflix.
Fans were absolutely heartbroken when Luther creator Neil Cross confirmed a few years back that the critically-acclaimed drama would not be renewed by BBC following the show’s fifth season. Fortunately, Netflix saw potential in the series and quickly got to work on a bringing the detective series back in the form of a movie. Although it’s been over four years since the show concluded, the titular character (masterfully played by Idris Elba) is clearly as popular as he’s ever been, as Luther: The Fallen Sun is the #1 movie on Netflix, according to Flix Patrol.
Confirmed in September 2021, filming on the motion picture adaptation began November 21. Shooting for the movie took place in London and at Lite Studios in Brussels, Belgium. The Fallen Sun was released in select theaters on February 24, 2023, and it began streaming exclusively on Netflix on March 10.
Serving as a continuation of the BBC series, the film sees disgraced detective John Luther (Idris Elba) sitting behind bars while a serial killer terrorizes London. Haunted by his failure to capture the cyber-psychopath who now taunts him, Luther escapes from prison to finish the job by any means necessary. Luther creator Neil Cross penned the screenplay for the movie, with Jamie Payne handling directing duties.
In addition to starring in The Fallen Sun, Idris Elba also produced the feature. He’s joined by several new castmates, including Cynthia Erivo, Andy Serkis, Thomas Coombes, Hattie Morahan, Vincent Regan, Dan Li, Ross Waiton, Edward Hogg, and Carl Spencer. Dermot Crowley also stars in the film, reprising his role as Martin Schenk from the Luther series.
Although The Fallen Sun received lukewarm reviews from professional critics, with a score of 66 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, the film was undoubtedly a hit for longtime fans of the BBC drama. From everyday viewers, the movie has a solid score of 85 percent. Idris Elba was hailed for his performance as detective John Luther in the adaptation, which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering he was nominated for multiple Primetime Emmy Awards for his turn as the character on the television show.
Of course, long before Idris Elba was captivating viewers as John Luther, he spent the early years of his career appearing in small roles in various series, including Absolutely Fabulous, The Bill, and The Governor. His first motion picture role came in 1999, where he was cast as the character Grégoire in the Gabriel Aghion-directed comedy Beautiful Mother. It was a small role, no doubt, but it certainly helped him to land much bigger roles, such as the character of Heimdall in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
These days, Idris Elba is one of the busiest actors in Hollywood, with a slew of projects in the works. In addition to returning to voice the character of Knuckles in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, as well as in the spin-off show Sonic the Series, the actor is set to star in the upcoming television drama Hijack, alongside Mohamed Elsandel and Justin Salinger. For now, you can witness Elba return as detective John Luther in The Fallen Sun, which is now streaming exclusively on Netflix.
