The 40-year-old actor says he was over the moon when he was chosen to represent the South African anti-apartheid icon because it was such a big opportunity to educate people on a legend, reported Contactmusic.
"It meant so much to me, it's such a massive opportunity to be part of a true legend's life, and more importantly, the film re-educates people on this legend," Elba said.
"I never met Mandela because he was very ill, so our interpretation of him was without his personal influence. But the script is such a good script, and obviously it comes from his book, and the book speaks for itself.