Idris Elba Named People's Sexiest Man Alive For 2018

Move over, Blake Shelton — actor Idris Elba is People magazine's new Sexiest Man Alive for 2018!

During his Monday, Nov. 5, 2018, appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the Wire alum was officially named the publication's 33rd ever Sexiest Man Alive. The title has previously gone to other Hollywood hunks like Brad Pitt, George Clooney, and Denzel Washington.

Calling it an "amazing" honor, Elba told host Jimmy Fallon, "My mom is going to be very proud." 

Meanwhile, when asked about his initial reaction to the exciting news, he admitted to People, "I was like, 'Come on, no way. Really?'" before jokingly adding, "Looked in the mirror, I checked myself out. I was like, 'Yeah, you are kind of sexy today.'" However, the Luther star, who got engaged to model Sabrina Dhowre in February 2018, went on to add, "But to be honest, it was just a nice feeling. It was a nice surprise — an ego boost for sure."

As Nicki Swift previously reported, country music star Shelton received this iconic title in November 2017. However, the magazine's seemingly controversial choice sparked its fair share of social media backlash at the time, and it wasn't long before The Voice star's girlfriend, No Doubt rocker Gwen Stefani, came to her man's defense. "It was just chaos, craziness," she said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show last December. "If you think about it, what defines sexy? It really is so personal, you know what I mean? For me, it's just that big old heart and that sense of humor. He doesn't even take himself seriously, and he's just such an incredible person. And that's sexy to me."

Meanwhile, Elba is already using his newly acquired — and, quite frankly, long overdue — title for good. "Who'd have thought it! Thank you @people & all the fans for naming me #SexiestManAlive," the Thor: Ragnarok star wrote to his 2.4 million followers on Instagram, captioning a photo of his People magazine cover. Alongside a fist-bump emoji, the British actor went on to share an important message about the Tuesday, Nov. 6 midterm elections, writing, "I'm honoured & thankful. But what's even more important is your vote in the midterm elections. Your vote can make a difference!" Well said.