Idris Elba is the first man to cover Maxim: would you hit it like a house on fire?

idris maxim

OH. MY. DRIIS.

I’ll admit it, my first reaction to seeing Idris Elba on the cover of the September issue of Maxim – the first man to ever cover the magazine – was something along the lines of this:

Pass the smelling salts. Damn.

Maxim’s September issue is all about men’s fashion apparently, and given Idris’s new collection (which he helped design) with Superdry, Maxim’s female editor was all, “Yeah, let’s just put Idris on the cover.” God bless her. Even thought our beautiful Idris looks like James Bond on the cover, Driis tells Maxim:

“If I were the Bond producers and everyone was pointing me toward one actor, what’s the surprise in that? Honestly, it’s one of those things that if it should happen, it would be a self-fulfilling prophecy; it would be the will of a nation.”

[From E! News]

I would hate that kind of brag from Taylor Swift, but from Idris… no, I don’t hate it. Idris is also gearing up to promote Beasts of No Nation, the Netflix film directed and adapted by Cary Fukunaga. Idris stars as a warlord in Africa with an army of child soldiers. It’s said to be an incredible and disturbing film, and Netflix believes in it so much that they’re doing a full-on premiere and limited theater run so the film could conceivably be up for some awards this season. Idris will likely be on hand at the Venice Film Festival a month from now for the world premiere of the film. Cary Fukunaga and Big Driis on the same red carpet? Hot damn. Here’s the teaser trailer for the film:

God, that just tears me up. Idris is good when he plays villains though.

Anyway… this Maxim shoot is fantastic.

idris5

idris2

Photos courtesy of Maxim.

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108 Responses to “Idris Elba is the first man to cover Maxim: would you hit it like a house on fire?”

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  1. Lilacflowers says:

    Hitting that senseless right now.

    • mimif says:

      His coat on the cover tho. And he can wear the shit out of a suit, no? No hitting, just caressing.

      • Lilacflowers says:

        Caressing while hitting.

      • NUTBALLS says:

        The pants take away from the sexiness. They should have put him in a robe with nothing underneath. I wouldn’t have hesitated to drag him to the couch to do things to him. Naughty, naughty things…

      • mimif says:

        Idris is Mt. Marathon. 😛 So awesome you’re going up next year! I’m sure you saw the stats this year, incredible.

      • Kitten says:

        This dude has so much f*cking style, he’s even working that terrible housecoat. And yes, I would hit it but no talky-talky because that could ruin my experience.

      • NUTBALLS says:

        mimif — Kilian and Emelie are the superstar couple of ultrarunning and I was bummed not to be there this year. Young Allie O had a phenomenal run.

        FYI…both of them are worth following on instagram if you enjoy pretty pictures from the top of mountains…

        Kitten – I find his accent rather sexy. Does that make me weird??

      • mimif says:

        Nah his accent is ultra sexy!

      • Tiffany :) says:

        He’s really embodying the idea of how a wearer can elevate the clothes they are wearing. He looks so hot and powerful and intense. Yowza!

    • MsGoblin says:

      Yes, indeedy!

    • Sixer says:

      I have it on good authority (the rhubarb fairy) that he goes for women with plenty of rhubarb. Amazingly enough, I AM such a woman. So hands off. He’s MINE.

    • BengalCat2000 says:

      After this and the delightful story about Lenny, I don’t see myself being very productive today.

    • Lilacflowers says:

      @Kitten, Idris always is equipped with a ball gag

    • Alex says:

      If you don’t want to hit that I question your sense of humanity lol 😉

    • I Choose Me says:

      He never used to do anything for me then I started watching Luthor. And now I’m like goddamn.

      Gotta come up with a strategy on how to cull the herd.

    • NeNe says:

      +1.

      I’m with you on that!

  2. Snazzy says:

    this makes me happy

  3. lisa2 says:

    He is a sexy man.. he actually looks a bit like my older brother..

    but my comment is at this point why hasn’t he made it big. I know women on line are always going on about him and fawning.. but he has been around a while now; and yet he is not as big a deal as I would have thought he would be at this point. I don’t think the online admiration is building him up. I know he is making movies; but he has yet to star in a film that pushes him to that place. I don’t understand it.

    • Josephine says:

      His name is being tossed around for James Bond, so that’s something. Some people just take longer to make it than others, and being a minority probably means he has to work harder to be seen as the leading man, since I assume that many people still have the stereotyped vision of a white man in their head when they read scripts. I hope times are changing…

      • lisa2 says:

        I don’t see the James Bond thing happening. especially now.. That Damian Lewis guy is UGH to me and I just can’t.. but even with that mention things are not moving as fast for him as I would expect.

        I think he is very talented and your points are valid.. I always have a problem with people fawning all over some guy on gossip sites YET not really supporting their projects. He needs people to go out in mass and support his movies. and I don’t think that is happening. Talking about someone on a gossip site is not going to propel their career.

      • Josephine says:

        @lisa2: I completely don’t get the Damian Lewis possibility either (but people loathed the idea of Daniel Craig and I think he’s nailed it). About the “making it” bit, some of my favs have never really “made it,” but that doesn’t mean they’re not great actors. J.K. Simmons may be a good example of someone who was clearly talented but typically a bit player. And maybe Idris is just drawn to smaller, more interesting projects?

    • Saywhaywhen says:

      @Lisa2: Uhm, important question– how tall is your older brother. Uhm, the one that looks like Idris. And, as an afterthought, he’s over 18, right?

  4. Jessie says:

    Can I just say, he has the loveliest hands …. The rest of him is also perfection, but his hands – swoon.

    • The Other Katherine says:

      I was just thinking the same thing about the hands! Glad to see I’m not alone in that. 🙂

      I have to say, his “Blue Steel” expression in these photos makes me laugh, given we’ve seen how goofy he is in non-modeling photos. But, yeah, they’re good — lots of actors can’t model effectively to save their lives, but clearly he can.

  5. Beth No. 2 says:

    I cannot wait for Idris to slay in his Beasts of No Nation role.

    And that gif is entirely inappropriate! Too many women are standing upright and only one is fainting; that can’t possibly be the case. 😉

  6. BeBeA says:

    YES!

  7. Kiddo says:

    I love the inside photos, some more than others, but I don’t like the lady’s bathrobe coat on the cover.

  8. Iknowwhatboyslike says:

    Like he ate the last piece of cake I was thinking about all day. One question, why is he covered up? Aren’t the women in Maxim usually in barely there underwear?

  9. GingerCrunch says:

    Jaysus! Open that coat and let me sit down. Did I go too far?

  10. GlimmerBunny says:

    He is THE SEX. Please let him be the next Bond! If no Tom Hardy is the only acceptable substitute.

    • Josephine says:

      Yes to both. He would nail it as James Bond, and I would take Hardy as a second. Some of the other names being tossed around are absurd IMHO.

  11. Abbott says:

    Why isn’t he wearing a wet string bikini like the other Maxim models?

  12. vauvert says:

    He looks fine but no, don’t get it… Fine actor though, but I don’t see the Bond team getting someone his age. Ten years ago, maybe, but not now.

  13. Tash says:

    Shiiit, does anyone need a kidney?! In order to hit that, I’m willing to give one up.

  14. Yeses says:

    Like he owes me money….sweet mother of all that is holy…the man oozes sex appeal doesn’t he…fanning myself…whew!!

  15. Astrid says:

    Except for the front cover coat…just WOW he’s hot and should be the next Bond

  16. Linn says:

    That thing he is wearing on the cover is ugly, ugly, ugly. Is that from his collection? And no, I would not hit. You don’t need to fight me for him ladies.

    Quote on why he is on the cover “For me, he was really the perfect embodiment of what I think the new Maxim man is. He’s multi-dimensional, he’s complex, he’s sophisticated, but he’s down to earth.”

    If only the perfext embodiment of the Maxim woman could be anything like this.

  17. Nev says:

    Til the cops come knocking.

  18. Jayna says:

    Can I be the nanny in his household? That’s all I’ve got. LOL

  19. NUTBALLS says:

    Hot damn, he gorgeous.

    I need a new season of Luther. STAT!

  20. serenella says:

    Oh wow, he never disappoint does he?

  21. Mom2two says:

    Yes, like a category five hurricane. I agree that if he was ten years younger, he would be the top choice for Bond. By the time Craig is done with his contract and they are ready to start again with a new Bond, Idris would be too old.

  22. Nessa says:

    Wow. Just… Wow.

  23. Kate says:

    Lord, YES I would.

    I hope the rumors aren’t true that Damian Lewis is going to be the next Bond. Idris just has that Bond look….

  24. Mimz says:

    Quoting my favorite character in Cougar Town – Barb (Carolyn Hennesy):

    “I’ve already done 6 things to it in my head”

    Someone bring me that MAN

    I think I’m Going to take a walk.

    *swoon*

  25. Esteph says:

    Kaiser your GIF is perfection

  26. Livealot says:

    The outfit on the cover is a let down

  27. Jess says:

    Omg. Yes!!!

  28. Shanie says:

    Idris and Macy Gray do a cover of Cobie Caillet’s Bubbly. Completely worth it.

  29. funcakes says:

    I think all of you have summed up what I would want to do with this beautiful sexy beast.

    Always enjoy Celebitchy’s version of Mad Libs

  30. Katie says:

    Beautiful classy man-Purr-FECT!

  31. BooBooLaRue says:

    Okay, just a thought, why does everyone think my darling Idris is too old to be Bond? This man is only going to age like the finest wine and why can’t Bond get older? After all, those of us who have watched Bond from the beginning, well, hell, we’re getting old too? And while I love Daniel Craig as Bond, he hasn’t aged well like Idris. My darling Idris.

    • Lilacflowers says:

      The holders of the rights to Bond have decreed that they won’t make the Roger Moote mistake again so they have a cut off age for Bond

      • BooBooLaRue says:

        silly old fools, Idris is ageless. but thanks for the 411

      • mom2two says:

        You know what’s funny, if the producers of Bond are seriously looking at Damian Lewis, he’s a year older than Idris! I am sorry you cannot seriously select Lewis as Bond when Idris is out there.

        I will also add, Idris has a movie coming out next year called Bastille Day that co-stars Richard Madden. I am pretty sure between two of them, I am going to need my ovaries replaced.

  32. Layday says:

    The second picture is my favorite, he’s sexy, regal, and predatory all rolled up in one. I personally love when Idris plays bad guys cause he does it so well. He was masterful as a bad guy in No Good Deed. I am still holding out hope he gets to be Bond though. I have never gone to the movie theaters to see a Bond film in my life, but I so would if he were in it.

  33. HoustonGrl says:

    That GIF says it all

  34. ladyg says:

    So, I’m sitting here. Complete with a goofy smile on my face, drooling over pictures of Idris Elba. And then I hit the “links” teaser box and fall on drake (cue the Price is Right “whomp waaa” sound). Drake’s picture, in such close proximity to Elba’s, makes Drake look like a little boy who let’s his mommy dress him!

  35. ABBESS TANSY (TEE JAY) says:

    I would ride him like I was on the Pony Express. *need smelling salts*

  36. kri says:

    I would hit it like it had eight legs and was crawling up my wall. I would hit it like a ball. I would hit at the mall. I would hit it in that housecoat, I would hit in a big boat. Oh, god, someone help. How am I supposed to work tonight?!?

  37. phlyfiremama says:

    *drools helplessly Is it just utterly sad that I am STILL crushing on Stringer Bell??!! Dear dog, this man is so incredibly sexy~gorgeous~ intense~sexy~did I mention sexy?

  38. EN says:

    Not my cup of tea. He looks entirely too pleased with himself, kind of like a peacock.

  39. kir says:

    What a god damn beautiful man. WOW.

  40. nikko says:

    Lord have Mercy!!!!

  41. lolavie says:

    I don’t get what people see in this guy looks-wise.

    Same with Benedict and Mark Ruffalo. Just don’t see it.

  42. Me & Myself says:

    No thanks.

  43. Dee says:

    That is a man with presence. Immense presence.

  44. EM says:

    He has bags of charisma and elegance.