Idris Elba has been called a lot of things, especially by his throng of rabid, female fans, but “too street” has never been one of them.

There has been a lot of speculation around who should play the next James Bond and Idris Elba’s name is one that has been piquing the interest of many – actually becoming a fan favorite to play the role.  If Elba was chosen to play the iconic character, he would be the first Black actor to portray James Bond, but there are still people in key positions who just don’t feel Idris Elba is a good fit.

Anthony Horowitz, the writer of the new James Bond novel, Trigger Mortis, has created a controversy for himself when he recently told the Daily Mail that he believes Elba is “probably a bit too ‘street’ for Bond. Is it a question of being suave? Yeah.”

Many people took Horowitz’s choice of words of “too street” to be code for “too Black.”  Elba, with his heavy London-accent, fit build and commanding presence is actually far from street and the roles he plays reflect his suave attributes.

Author Ta-Nehisi Coates did not need any code to express her feelings about Anthony Horowitz’s statement:

Elba is “too street” in much the same way that Obama was “too foreign,” and King was “too communist,” @jbouie

The estate of James Bond creator Ian Fleming chose Horowitz to take over the 007 books and in an interview, Horowitz said that his issue with Elba not being right for the role had nothing to do with his race.“Idris Elba is a terrific actor, but I can think of other black actors who would do it better,” the writer said. Horowitz tweeted an apology for his comments on September 1, 2015 expressing remorse over his choice of words and clarifying his original statement.      

I’m really sorry my comments about Idris Elba have caused offence [full statement attached] pic.twitter.com/UD6ouA45Uv — Anthony Horowitz (@AnthonyHorowitz) September 1, 2015

Regardless, Idris Elba is in demand and not starving for work – Trekkies everywhere are awaiting the arrival of Star Trek Beyond.

source:  http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/01/entertainment/idris-elba-bond-anthony-horowitz-feat/