Damson Idris is a massive star in America, but the British actor is still making a name for himself in the UK.
He landed his breakout role on US series Snowfall in 2017, playing a drug kingpin in South Central LA – despite never having been to the States at that point.
Plucked from obscurity to play the part of Franklin Saint by Boyz n the Hood director John Singleton, who sadly died in 2019, he has been billed as the next Denzel Washington.
The 31-year-old from Peckham, south London, affectionately recalls how Singleton would even call him ‘Dam-zel’.
Fast forward six years and Damson is on season six of Snowfall and has bagged himself an A-list girlfriend after going Instagram official with US model and socialite Lori Harvey in January.
Here we look at Damson’s incredible rise to fame, from growing up on one of Britain’s toughest estates to winning Best Actor at the 2023 BET Awards.
Growing up on Damilola Taylor estate
Idris, whose full name is Adamson Alade-Bo Idris, was born to Nigerian parents in Peckham, south London in September 1991.
The youngest of six children, the family lived on the notorious North Peckham Estate, where 10-year-old Damilola Taylor was tragically stabbed to death in 2000.
Despite being branded one of the deprived areas in Europe, Idris and his five siblings have done well for themselves and work in banking, IT and law.
But before he started acting, Damson dreamed of being a footballer. He had a trial at Charlton Athletic and even made it on to Beckham’s Hotshots, to get the chance to train with David in Madrid.
Damson studied Theatre, Film & Television studies at Brunel University and quickly caught the acting bug after landing a part in Pandora’s Box at the Arcola Theatre in east London in 2012.
He got paid £400 for a week’s work and revealed he spent it all on a pair of Prada shoes, calling it “the happiest moment of my life”.
Breakout role on Snowfall
After continuing his training at London’s Identity School of Acting alongside the likes of Letitia Wright and John Boyega, Damson began to land TV roles.
In 2013, he appeared in comedy series Miranda and parts in Doctors and Casualty followed.
But his big break came when he auditioned for the part of Franklin Saint in John Singleton’s Snowfall in 2017, beating huge US stars to win the role.
However, things didn’t go smoothly as the pilot episode was panned by the network, who ordered it be reshot and every part recast – except Damson.
While he waited to hear what would happen next, the actor worked as an usher in West End theatres to pay his bills.
“During that time I was working in Lion King as an usher at the Lyceum Theatre,” he told The Guardian. “I was at the front: ‘Programme and brochures!” Not even on stage. Every day I was thinking, ‘Man, this moment right here, one day it’s going to be different.”
Unconventional acting style
Getting into the role of an evil drug kingpin who rules over South Central LA in the 1980s isn’t an easy feat.
So Damson said he looked to the devil for inspiration on how to make his character as bad as he could be.
In a video for The Hollywood Reporter, he shared: “In this last season, I was like ‘Oh, I’m not doing it right. I went in the corner and I was looking at the wall and I was like, ‘Come on Devil, come to me. I had to do something crazy.”
But although he nailed the part, Damson said he had “nightmares for a month” afterwards.
A-list life and model girlfriend
And life certainly is different these days. Damson splits his time between his flat in south London and LA when he is working.
Snowfall, which has an impressive 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and drawn comparisons with The Wire, has spanned six seasons. Those who haven’t seen it yet can catch up on BBC iPlayer.
He has since starred in an episode of Black Mirror called Smithereens and appeared on the big screen in films Farmed (2018), opposite Kate Beckinsale, and Outside The Wire (2021).
British rapper Dave also featured Damson in the video for his track ‘Black’ and he was picked to model in a Savage x Fenty campaign for Rihanna.
You can currently catch him in Swarm, a psychological thriller on Amazon Prime about an obsessed fan who goes to increasingly violent lengths for her favourite R&B singer. Look out for Billie Eilish popping up too.
Damson now counts Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and even Vogue editor Edward Enninful as pals.
And his American accent is so good – he learned it from US rapper WC - people can’t believe he isn’t American when they meet him.
All of this caught the attention of model and socialite Lori Harvey, the daughter of comedian Steve Harvey. The glamorous pair made their relationship Instagram official in January with a sweet snap of Damson kissing Lori on the cheek.
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