Idris Elba is fronting a new BBC documentary about knife crime in which he discusses solutions with the King and the Prime Minister.
The 52-year-old Luther actor launched a campaign earlier this year calling for an immediate ban on machetes and so-called zombie knives, and met Sir Keir Starmer last month to launch a new anti-knife crime coalition.
Elba said: “So many people dismiss knife crime as something that doesn’t affect them, assuming it’s a black and brown urban and gang-related problem – but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
(L to R) Tanisha Dadar, whose cousin, Ronan Kanda, was killed in 2022, actor Idris Elba, Yemi Hughes, whose son, Andre Aderemi, was murdered in 2016, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper at a knife crime summit in Downing Street (Ian Vogler/Daily Mirror/PA)
“White, middle-class and rural areas are also affected, perpetrators are getting younger, and fear is spreading.
“I hope our film goes some way towards changing these stereotypes and getting everyone to engage with one of the biggest challenges of our time. For me, it’s been a tough year – but I’m hopeful.”
In the hour-long documentary, which has the working title of Idris Elba: A Year Of Knife Crime, the actor meets young offenders, bereaved families, youth workers and the police, to understand why there has been an upward trend in knife crime.
The film also shows him discussing solutions to youth violence with the King and Sir Keir, whom Elba also met during the election campaign to push for action on knife crime.
BBC commissioning editor Gian Quaglieni said: “The eye-opening documentary sees Idris witness first-hand the impact knife crime has on bereaved families, and also the perpetrators and wider communities.
“Idris and the team have worked hard to ensure the film is handled with the utmost sensitivity, care and rigour it deserves.
“At its core, the film asks, with everything we now know, what are the most effective approaches to tackling knife crime across the UK? We hope the documentary will be impactful with our audience.”
Executive producer Diene Petterle, who co-founded production company 22 Summers with Elba in June, said: “This film is an opportunity to understand knife crime from the inside, through those who live and breathe its reality every day, including perpetrators at Feltham Prison and Young Offender Institution. You don’t often get that kind of access.”
This year Elba made an appearance on the West Holts stage at the Glastonbury Festival to speak about his anti-knife crime campaign, Don’t Stop Your Future, and told the PA news agency that young people “are being ignored”, which is leading to “a rise in violence and all sorts of fragmented behaviour”.
– The documentary, commissioned for BBC One and BBC iPlayer, will air in early 2025.