Idris Elba found directing difficult

Hollywood actor Idris Elba had fun directing his first film Yardie, but says it was more difficult than he expected.

"I consider myself fortunate to have had the opportunity to direct this material, with which I can identify quite a bit. The story takes place in London and Jamaica, and it's based on the novel (Victor Headley's Yardie), which was popular urban fiction in the 80s and 90s," he says.

"It's been a lot of fun, but also the hardest thing I've done. I never realised how difficult it was going to be, but I loved it and getting to spend time in Jamaica was phenomenal," he adds.

Elba was last seen in Molly's Game and he was "blown away" when The West Wing screenwriter Aaron Sorkin asked him to be a part of his directorial debut. "Molly's Game is his directorial debut and he's obviously learned a lot from working with so many great directors. He's a true genius and one of the greatest screen writers in history. When he called to ask me if I wanted to do his film, I just told him, 'I'm in'."

Elba plays criminal defence lawyer Charlie Jaffey in the film and only broke from using his character's American accent when his 16-year-old daughter Isan visited him on set. "I had so much dialogue. I couldn't afford to let myself slip back into my usual voice. I needed to concentrate on the accent so I would speak to everyone in Charlie's voice."