“The Wire” alum Idris Elba admits he's never watched the show — and refuses to try: 'It's weird for me'

Idris Elba is certainly proud of his time on The Wire, but that doesn't mean he wants to relive it.

The actor who spent three seasons as business savvy criminal Russell "Stringer" Bell recently broke poor Amy Poehler's heart by sharing that he never actually watched his own hit show.

"If I'm really honest, I didn't watch The Wire," Elba shared on Poehler's Good Hang podcast. "I didn't watch it. And I feel bad. It's not that I'm not a fan of it — I was there. I made a show that was, you know, so intense and so real, so important, even though we didn't realize it. I didn't realize the importance of the show while making it."

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"Rarely do we," noted the Parks and Recreation alum.

Paul Schiraldi/HBO

Idris Elba as Stringer Bell on 'The Wire'

Elba continued, "I didn't participate in its celebration as a viewer, as a fan. And so I feel a little bit outside of the club."

Poehler, very much a member of the show's fan club, identified The Wire as "a series that changed my life" and revealed that she's watched it all the way through at least three times. But when she encouraged Elba to finally check the series out for himself, the actor shook his head.

"No, man," he replied.

"You can't watch it now?," Poehler asked. "But I bet, Idris, I bet you have a feeling about it that you might be kinder to yourself and [the show], watching it now."

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Elba then clarified that watching himself onscreen isn't the sole reason he is reluctant to revisit the show.

"It's more that I feel the presence of it all, my life since The Wire… In terms of its impact," he explained. "So to me, it was almost a bit like I was Stringer Bell. I'm not Stringer Bell, but I also feel like when Stringer Bell died, there was a part of me that died with that character. It's weird for me to go back and watch it."

Paul Schiraldi/HBO

Idris Elba and Dominic West on 'The Wire'

Elba added that, generally, he hates becoming "overly conscious" of his performance in a role: "I like being in it rather than watching it," he said.

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The Wire marked Elba’s first major role on a U.S. series. He appeared in the first three seasons of the acclaimed 2002 drama before — spoiler alert — his smooth-talking drug kingpin met a bitter end in the season 3 finale. Over two decades removed from the role, Elba says he is still approached about the series by fans of varying ages.

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"At least once a day, someone says, 'Bro, Stringer Bell, The Wire,' whatever it is. And, you know, it really does, it surprises me how much impact that show had," he shared. "In a good way, it surprises me continuously that, you know, multi-generationally, it's still being talked to [by] people that weren't even born then."

He added, "I feel proud. I feel a sense of pride."

Watch Elba's full conversation with Poehler above.

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