Although the news cycle was a bit preoccupied with the midterm elections, People magazine had another result to share: The name of the 2018 Sexiest Man Alive.

Recently, the magazine declared Idris Elba, the beloved British actor, the winner of this year’s title. Jimmy Fallon broke the news on The Tonight Show, as he revealed the cover to Elba, who appeared via satellite from London.

“Congratulations on being the sexiest man alive. We have the cover here,” Fallon said. “It refers to you as a sweet, smoldering superstar. Can we see a little smolder?”

Elba, 46, showed off his sweet and smoldering looks, to the delight of the studio audience. He also caught his first glimpse at the cover, and was very pleased.

Idris Elba named People’s Sexiest Man Alive for 2018

“It’s amazing, I’m really, really happy with that. Thank you so much, People magazine, for making me sexiest man in the world,” Elba said, flexing a bicep. “My mum is going to be very, very proud.”

Unlike past Sexiest Men Alive (the cover has been a tradition since 1985), Elba doesn’t have a big upcoming project to promote. Elba, who became a star in America after HBO’s The Wire had a memorable part in Avengers: Infinity War this year, reprising his role from the Thor franchise.

People reported that Elba, a father of two, keeps busy “deejaying in Ibiza, kickboxing in Thailand, or designing his own clothing line, not to mention planning his wedding to his fiancée Sabrina Dhowre, 29, a model.”

Plus, he’s working on the highly-anticipated fifth season of Luther, which will reportedly debut on BBC One in the near future. His starring role as a brilliant detective earned him a Golden Globe award and four Emmy nominations.

And while he wasn’t nominated for any awards for his brief stint on NBC’s The Office, we feel the need to remind everyone of this classic line: “I am aware of the effect I have on women.”

Elba also recently shot down the persistent rumour that he would be the next actor to play James Bond — but a Sexiest Man Alive title won’t help quiet speculation.

Thank you so much, People magazine, for making me sexiest man in the world,” Elba said, flexing a bicep. “My mum is going to be very, very proud.”

Here are all the previous winners, which includes Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan:

1985: Mel Gibson
1986: Mark Harmon
1987: Harry Hamlin
1988: John F. Kennedy Jr.
1989: Sean Connery
1990: Tom Cruise
1991: Patrick Swayze
1992: Nick Nolte
1993: Richard Gere and Cindy Crawford (sexiest couple)
1994: No one — possible lack of sexiness that year
1995: Brad Pitt
1996: Denzel Washington
1997: George Clooney
1998: Harrison Ford
1999: Richard Gere (again)
2000: Brad Pitt (again)
2001: Pierce Brosnan
2002: Ben Affleck
2003: Johnny Depp
2004: Jude Law
2005: Matthew McConaughey
2006: George Clooney (again)
2007: Matt Damon
2008: Hugh Jackman
2009: Johnny Depp (again)
2010: Ryan Reynolds
2011: Bradley Cooper
2012: Channing Tatum
2013: Adam Levine
2014: Chris Hemsworth
2015: David Beckham
2016: The Rock
2017: Blake Shelton

— By arrangement with The Washington Post

Published in Dawn, ICON, November 18th, 2018