10 Awesome Actors Who Automatically Improve Any Movie By Their Presence

6. A Side Of Charisma - Idris Elba

Gravitas is an intangible quality that is impossible to fake €“ you either have it or you don'€™t. Having gravitas allows for an actor to automatically sell a role to the audience. Actor Idris Elba has this quality and has been called upon to bring it bear in a variety of roles.

Elba got his start in British TV, making appearances in such series as Ruth Rendell Mysteries and Family Affairs but it wasn't until he landed a starring role in the HBO series The Wire that Elba made a splash across the pond. Elba's charismatic presence and ability to adopt a flawless American accent brought him to the attention of Hollywood.

Although Elba has starred in critical darlings like the BBC series Luther, he has also acted in his share of Hollywood turkeys. Elba has lent his talents to supporting roles in critical duds like The Unborn and Obsessed but somehow managed to make it out with his dignity intact. This can be attributed to that intangible gravitas, which gives Elba the ability to make his characters credible, even when the situations they find themselves in are ridiculous.

Elba's presence has anchored major scifi blockbusters like Thor, Pacific Rim, and Prometheus. While another actor would have looked plain silly in the ridiculous hat Elba had to wear as Heimdall in Marvel's Thor franchise, Elba managed to look badass while doing it. Elba can be depended on to make us believe in whatever sci-fi craziness is unfolding around and has become an indispensable character actor in genre films.