Idris Elba Reveals He Was Once Held at Gunpoint Trying to Protect the Gunman's Girlfriend

“He pulled out a gun, stuck it right in my face, and goes, ‘You talking about my girl?’ He thought I was trying to hit on her,” the actor recalled

Idris Elba revealed that he was once held at gunpoint trying to protect the gunman’s girlfriend.

The London-born actor, 50, recalled the incident from when he was in the U.S. during a recent interview with the Daily Mail published Tuesday.

“I nearly lost my f------ life after attempting to stop a man threatening his girlfriend outside a club,” Elba shared.

Related: Idris Elba Says He Was Interested in Portraying James Bond Until 'It Became About Race'

He detailed: “A guy [was] whaling on his missus, screaming in her face, ‘I’ll f------ kill you,’ and so on. I come round and I go, ‘Look how beautiful she is. Why would you talk to this beautiful princess like that?’ ”

“He pulled out a gun, stuck it right in my face, and goes, ‘You talking about my girl?’ He thought I was trying to hit on her,” the Luther actor explained.

“I remember thinking, ‘Don’t play negotiations like that… Consequences, man,’ ” noted Elba.

It is unclear when or where exactly the gun was pulled on Elba or how the rest of the incident played out.

Related: Idris Elba Elaborates on Statement About Not Describing Himself as a 'Black Actor'

Earlier this month, the 2018 Sexiest Man Alive title-holder spoke with PEOPLE about his new Apple TV+ drama series Hijack, where he plays a corporate negotiator who takes on airplane hijackers.

“I’ve never been afraid to fly,” Elba told PEOPLE. “But I don’t really love long, long flights. And turbulence is freaky.”

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He also opened up about which of his scars has the best story behind their creation: “When I was three or four years old, I was climbing up a [jungle gym] and decided to jump over the side of it. As I did, there was a rusty nail that nicked my left wrist right near my artery. It just started to bleed out.”

“I remember I was fascinated at how white my flesh was, like, 'Whoa, look at that!' And I passed out,” he added. “I survived it. It healed. And I have the scar to prove it.”

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