Look man,” says Delroy Lindo, looking almost slightly defensive. “Perspective is important.” We are maybe 20 seconds into our conversation, and the British-American star of Sinners had warned that he’s going to talk softly, having lost his voice last night. That must be stressful when you’re an actor, I had suggested. If I lost my voice, I could just spend the day sipping lemon teas and trying to level up my Harvey Fierstein impression. But if Delroy Lindo lost his voice? On the wrong day, I suppose there could be professional ramifications. “I mean, yeah,” he says, then shrugs off the idea. “You can get stressed, but I try to be really, really, big on perspective. I’m sitting here in this very nice hotel. Man, I could be working at Tesco.”
It’s hard to really contemplate this possibility, because Lindo is one of those performers with a face screaming out for a camera. Over the past few decades, the now-73-year-old actor has proved himself a screen presence of rare, brilliant magnetism. He is probably best known for his repeat collaborations with Spike Lee – he’s terrific in films such as Crooklyn, Malcolm X and Da 5 Bloods – and is now getting serious Oscar buzz for his supporting turn in Sinners, Ryan Coogler’s vampire thriller. Today, he’s with me in the library room of a Soho hotel.
