A Lesson On Fragrance & Self-Expression From Idris Elba

Idris Elba knows how to keep things fresh. For more than three decades, the actor has been bobbing and weaving across screens both big and small, keeping audiences on their toes with his talent, and slipping from sitcoms to superhero sagas to serious, award-contending dramas with consummate, charisma-exuding ease.

He’s also punched in as a DJ, on and off, since his teen years — establishing a music career that has seen him play NBA All-Star parties and feature on Jay-Z’s 10th studio album, American Gangster. In 2015, he indulged his passion for motoring when he broke the ‘Flying Mile’ land speed record in a Bentley Continental GT. And he’s even done his fair share of actual bobbing and weaving, with a successful stint as a professional kickboxer.

But, for all of these hits (in both the ring and the entertainment industry), Elba’s every endeavour remains as energetic, fresh, and exciting as his last. And, with a new Calvin Klein partnership to his name, the actor is feeling fresher than ever.

“For me, it’s about seduction,” says Elba, explaining to SHARP his approach to the art of wearing aftershave. “You could put your favourite suit on, or shirt, but when you throw on a certain fragrance, then it’s like ‘yeah, I’m in the room.’ People will know that I’m here. And they’ll smell something that’s complementary to how I look.”

With such suaveness and swagger (for more than a decade, Elba was a fan-favourite to succeed Daniel Craig as 007), the actor is the ideal choice to represent Calvin Klein’s latest fragrance. The American fashion house has been creating zeitgeist-capturing scents for decades, beginning with the designer’s eponymous 1978 release, bottled in blush-red glass. The new aromatic essence, Eternity For Men, maintains that inaugural perfume’s sensuality, but is spritzed from a lacquered teal bottle that mimics the vibrancy of gemstones. It’s a masculine colour, matched to a silver cap inspired by the original Eternity fragrance that launched in 1988. And Elba himself is also matched on this campaign, to his wife, Canadian model Sabrina Dhowre Elba.

“It was lovely to be asked, sort of like joining a legacy,” says Elba, also noting that the campaign, which features the actor and his wife photographed together, is a rare representation of Black love in the commercial world. “Even more specifically, diversification in love,” Elba adds, “and seeing different cultures being celebrated. That definitely makes it feel more special.”

Sabrina, who married Elba in 2019, fronts the campaign for the more floral, female-led Eternity fragrance. But Eternity For Men also features its fair share of botanical notes. Crafted by seasoned perfumers Daphné Bugey and Frank Voelkl, it’s a scent that opens with fresh juniper berry notes, woody overtones, and a light dash of gin. At its heart, spiced cardamom is tempered by sweet lavender, and a twist of tropical coconut gives each spray an unexpectedly exotic edge.

“For me, it’s a classic smell,” says Elba of the fragrance. “And seductive. I remember, when I was a kid, and I first smelt CK One, I was seduced by the branding and the sexiness of the campaign. And then, when I wore it, it just made me feel a certain way. And not just sexy, but part of a group — part of a club.”

If Eternity gets Elba’s stamp of approval, it must be good, as the actor has been a discerning fragrance fan for decades. Another of his signature scents is an old Egyptian oud — an oil his wife immediately identified when she first met her future husband, as it reminded Sabrina of her mother’s Somalian heritage, where oud is also popular.

“And I just remember,” Elba says, “for really the first time ever, I actually talked about fragrance and scent with Sabrina. It really shifted the way that I saw that smell. And, overall, it really changed the way that I thought about scent.”

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