Idris Elba fell into "tough times" when he was trying to make it in Hollywood.
Idris Elba
The 'Dark Tower' star admits it was difficult getting his start in the acting industry as he had to rely on his savings, which he soon ran out of.
Speaking on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, he said: "I moved to New York, young budding actor, in the mid '90s. I had some savings and then my savings ran out and I couldn't get any work, it was tough times."
It comes after Idris admitted he misses the "anonymity" he used to have before he became an actor.
He explained: "I do get a lot of attention. I miss the anonymity a little bit ... That's one of the reasons why you live in a big city, so you can blend in.
"But I don't resent it. If I didn't want to be recognised I would've been a chess player ... I'm pretty cerebral. But what I mean is, I'm in the wrong profession to complain about being recognised. But people have goodwill. It's like: 'Idris, all right, mate?' They feel like they know you."
And Idris has admitted he is worried about burning out.
He said: "It's unhealthy to have that much going on. I don't want to sound ungrateful or anything, but I sleep less, I'm constantly thinking, I'm constantly multitasking, and I really don't know what the effects are going to be when I'm older. I don't ever stop.
"Not because I'm greedy or anything, but I'm always creating, debating with the part of my brain that is dormant. Wondering how I can move in and create a bit more space and take a bit more time. But it's almost like the more I achieve, the more capacity I have to achieve. I do worry sometimes about whether I'm going to burn out. Not burn myself out, but burn my art out, with audiences going, 'Ah, yeah, I've seen enough now, thanks very much.'"
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