‘We wanna make more!’ Luther creator Neil Cross reveals Idris Elba WILL return as the hard-bitten detective… with plans for a film already in development
The creator of BBC show Luther has confirmed a feature length spin-off is very much in the pipeline, but a shooting schedule is yet to be agreed.
The psychological drama featuring Idris Elba as the hard-bitten but brilliant Detective Chief Inspector John Luther ran for five hugely successful seasons between 2010 and 2019.
And Neil Cross, the man responsible for writing and developing the show, is confident Elba, 48, will pull on Luther’s famous overcoat for a big screen addition at some point in the near future.
Exciting: The creator of BBC show Luther has confirmed a feature length spin-off is very much in the pipeline, but a shooting schedule is yet to be agreed
He told the Radio Times: ‘Ask Idris! We are – I don’t know what I’m allowed to say, which is an answer in of itself! Words are my job and I’ve lost them all.
‘We wanna make more Luther. We’re gonna make more Luther. The how and the why, that’s all to come, but we’re gonna make more Luther.’
Inspired by legendary detective Sherlock Holmes and American sleuth Columbo, the show relies on Luther’s supreme intellect to solve a series of complex crimes across London.
It could be happening: Neil Cross, the man responsible for writing and developing the show, is confident Idris Elba will pull on Luther’s famous overcoat again at some point in the near future
Reflecting on the show in 2019, Elba admitted he was anxious to see it developed into a feature, and insisted he was keen to get on board at the nearest available opportunity.
‘I’ve maintained that I’d like to see [Luther] come to a film,’ he said. ‘That’s what I think we’re headed towards, is a film. I’m looking forward to making that happen… It is happening!
‘With film, the sky is the limit. You can be a little bit more bold with the storylines, and a little bit more international, and a little more up the scale. But John Luther is always going to be John Luther.’
Big hit: The psychological drama featuring Elba as the hard-bitten but brilliant Detective Chief Inspector John Luther ran for five hugely successful seasons between 2010 and 2019
He added: ‘Neil is beavering away on writing this thing, and I think the remit for the film is to scale it up.
‘It will be more murder, more Volvos, more frowning Luther… essentially we just want to try to take it to a much bigger audience and scale, and perhaps international as well.’
With COVID-19 restrictions currently limiting production, a schedule for any potential film is yet to be confirmed.
The show, which also features Ruth Wilson, Steven Mackintosh, Paul McGann and Indira Varma, has won numerous awards in the United Kingdom and United States following its original launch.
Elba has been recognised with a Critics’ Choice Television Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe Award for his role as Luther, while the show has been nominated for eleven Primetime Emmy Awards.
Main man: Inspired by legendary detectives Sherlock Holmes and Columbo, the show relies on Luther’s supreme intellect to solve a series of complex crimes across London