One could say there’s the thinnest of lines between keeping up with troubling news stories and feeling overwhelmed by them.
Idris Elba seems to know about that, because at times he finds it difficult to read about certain news stories, particularly when they come through social media. It’s something the actor admitted during a recent interview with Fast Company magazine.
“I’ve been trying to wean myself off,” Elba explained. “I used to post a lot more, but it’s been putting me off lately. And Twitter’s just not how I want to receive my news. I read the news aggregated on my iPad, but I can’t check it constantly. I’m not proud of it, but it’s true, because it makes me feel depressed.”
Meanwhile, as he’s been doing since his former series “The Wire” ended in 2008, the 47-year-old has been keeping ultra-busy with a variety of film and TV projects. Plus he’s a DJ who played the Coachella Music and Arts Festival this year, and he has his own record label too.
As reported, Elba will be starring in the all-Black Western “The Harder They Fall,” produced by Jay-Z. He’s also starring in the film “Cats,” with people like Jennifer Hudson, a project based on the famous Andrew Lloyd Webber musical of the same name.
Idris Elba said he’s been using social media much less these days because it takes away his happiness. (Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images)
In fact, Elba is so busy that he associates time with work and his many projects.
“I don’t think in terms of minutes or hours or days or dates, especially because I’m traveling between time zones,” he explained. “My home base is London, but I could be working anywhere around the world. I pretty much know my schedule for the whole year, and I think of it in terms of blocks of time, where each project is a block.”
And when it comes to guarding his good mood by choosing not to read disturbing news stories in the morning, Elba said he practices stillness instead.
“[I wake up] between 6 and 8 a.m.,” he explained. “I’ll just sit in the dark, stare and try not to do anything, just clear my mind and decompress. I pick up my phone and check my messages. Then I’ll get up, sit on the edge of the bed for a little bit, take the day in and take a shower.”
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