Idris Elba to star in Hobbs and Shaw

5 July 2018

Idris Elba is to star in 'Hobbs and Shaw'.

Idris Elba

The 45-year-old actor will play the villain in the 'Fast and Furious' spinoff, which will star Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham in the titular roles.

Announcing the news on social media, Dwayne shared: "He's a baaaaaad man. Welcoming my dude @idriselba with tattooed and open arms to our #HobbsAndShaw Fast & Furious spin-off movie. Every hero is only as good as their villain. Cue the music... let's dance ...

"I promised we were going to make this Fast & Furious spin off awesome and grow our franchise properly. He's a bad man (legit bad ass). I better toughen up #HobbsAndShaw (sic)"

Meanwhile, director David Leitch previously revealed his 'Fast and Furious' spin-off 'Hobbs And Shaw' will represent an evolution of the franchise.

He explained: "It's actually been really fun starting to press this movie with Dwayne and Jason. I couldn't be happier. I have done quite a few movies with Jason as a second unit director and a choreographer. I know him really well. I think what attracted me to that franchise is they really want to do something different. They understood that I wanted to sort of evolve their world, outside of the 'Fast' world, and give it its own imprint ... you're evolving, but you're still being true to the DNA and the core of the characters that people love."

David has relished the experience of working with Dwayne and Jason, describing them as "hardworking, talented actors".

He added: "I love that challenge, and doing it with Dwayne and Jason is like a dream. Those guys are hardworking, talented actors."

Production on 'Hobbs and Shaw' is set to begin later this year.