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Idris Elba is fighting one hell of a Beast, and it ain’t Scar from The Lion King either.
The actor plays Nate Samuels, a recently widowed medical doctor who goes on a trip to South Africa with his two daughters, Mer (Iyana Halley), and Norah (Leah Sava’ Jeffries).
As he attempts to mend his relationship with his children since losing his wife, the trio encounters a blood-thirsty lion who has survived capture from poachers.
The lion now looks at humans as enemies putting Samuels’ family in danger pushing them to fight back.
Producer-heavyweight Will Packer and Elba stopped by The Breakfast Club in the promotion of their new project.
During the conversation with DJ Envy, Angela Yee, and Charlamagne Da God, Packer described his version of the film saying,
“It’s about a family in peril. It’s about touching. It’s about the relentless nature and scourge of poaching that happens in Africa and it’s about this lion that’s man-made. We made this lion because in real life, poachers separate the Alpha males from their prides and they become rouge lions.”
Things took an interesting turn after the 49-year-old revealed that while his daughter wanted to be a part of the cast, on-screen chemistry was amiss.
“My daughter auditioned for the role, she wants to be an actress. She auditioned and it came down to chemistry in the film. [But] the relationship in the film and the relationship between [and my daughter] wasn’t right for the film, weirdly enough.”
Following Elba’s daughter not getting the role, he added,
“My daughter didn’t talk to me for about three weeks.”
Packer later admitted he made the call to Isan informing her that she didn’t get the role. He also said that he shared Elba’s interest in allowing offspring newcomers to go through the acting ropes through auditioning,
“Idris is right. Some of the nuances of like, real-life relationships [don’t] translate on screen.”
Isan Elba attends at the Ambassador reveal press conference on Nov. 14 in Los Angeles. Frederick M. Brown + Getty Images
What You May Not Know About Poaching Culture in Africa
Aug. 10 saw the celebration of World Lions Day for the preservation of lions and their longevity, per The Investigator News.
The “Kings of The Jungle” have faced a shortage crisis in Africa. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), there are roughly 20,000 lions left itemized as ‘vulnerable.’
Since April, three lions were killed. Two were electrocuted from a fence while the other was shot by a soldier and later fed to residents of Kobushera and Rwabaragi villages, in Kagadi District. Illegal wildfire trade with tiger teeth and bones is in high demand. Lion parts are now being sold as tiger products making them a financially high commodity across Africa.
Elba gave his take on poachers and the effects it has on surrounding communities. Charlamagne asked,
“Can we go back to the similarities between Idris and the lion? Because I feel like, you know, when you say that the lion realizes [the] man is his enemy.Talking about the white man.”
The Beast star explained that it’s not a Black or white issue, but a profitable resource,
So the poaching in the colonization is the correlation. But just to be clear, you know, poaching isn’t a white black thing. It is an EU, economical ecosystem. People that poach are either feeding people, buying stuff in different markets, or they’re trying to feed their families to poach. So it’s an economical drive.
He added,
“It’s not white or black. But yeah, definitely the economics. The rich get rich from poaching.”
Packer explained the symmetry between the lion’s survival rate when going up against man,
“The lion is a self-preservation character [who] is trying to protect his family. This lion is trying to protect his territory. So they end up going head to head, but they are absolutely on a parallel journey when they will be started.”
The International Anti-Poaching Foundation (IAPF) was created in support of nature preservation through ecological stability.
Donations can be made in a variety of ways such as transfers of stock, cryptocurrency, corporate sponsoring, and more. For more information as to how you can help, check out IAPF in detail.
Èmil Flemmon is the Managing Editor for the 360 Baseline Movement. The Atlanta-based editor, red carpet interviewer, writer, and photographer, has had a career spanning over a decade in the editorial industry. His work has been featured in Kontrol Magazine, The Atlanta Voice, Blavity, Aspire TV, REVOLT, The Jasmine Brand, and Where Y'at Magazine in New Orleans. His mission is to help journalists and publicists have better connectivity and relationships exclusively through the movement.
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