Idris Elba will compete against Lewis Hamilton in a new show.
Idris Elba will race Lewis Hamilton in a new show
The ‘Luther’ star will take on the Formula One driver in a race across the Saudi Arabian desert in a new two-part series, titled ‘Idris And Hamilton Race The Desert’, which is set to air on Channel 4.
It will see Idris, 50 and Lewis, 38, take on the Dakar Rally - a long-distance rally that takes places over a course of a few days - in electric 4x4 vehicles.
A TV source told The Sun newspaper's TV Biz column: “Idris is a self-confessed speed freak and was determined to make this a tough race for Lewis.
“The course is one of the toughest in sport, with the rough terrain a constant hazard for drivers.
“But that didn’t put either Idris or Lewis off as they were desperate to out-do each other, and their rivalry was captured brilliantly on camera.”
Lewis and Idris have been pals for years and it seems their friendship has rubbed off on one another, with the actor expressing his interest in fast cars.
In 2013, Idris filmed a two-part documentary series for the BBC titled ‘Idris Elba: King Of Speed’, which followed the actor on his pursuit of fulfilling his life-long ambition in becoming a rally driver.
In July last year, the ‘American Gangster’ star announced an initiative to find future racing talents for underrepresented communities in motorsports.
Speaking to the Standard, he said: “I’ve always had this soft spot for cars, engines, motorsports – anything with a steering wheel basically, and sort of married the idea that I’m someone who has always wanted to put an opportunity on the table. I stood in parliament, spoke about diversity and talked about talent being everywhere, but opportunity not.
“I was an inner-city kid, immigrant working-class parents, opportunities for me were really through what I could get at school, maybe a youth club here and there, but other than that if I wanted to be in motorsports there was almost zero opportunity.”
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