From Dan Krause over at Box Office Weekly:
There’s this guy, Sacha Baron Cohen, who is connected to Borat in some way… I think he’s his agent. Anyway, Baron Cohen gave an interview with Rolling Stone about Borat, and why you people are missing the point. And he’s right, of course.
First of all, understand that Baron Cohen NEVER interviews as himself. Even when he was doing publicity for TALLEDEGA NIGHTS he created an overbearing actor character for the publicity tour. So this is a big deal. It is the rare person who has been in the room with him and didn’t find themselves interfacing with Ali G. or Bruno or Borat.
The excerpt from the interview that is online is terrific. Apparently Baron Cohen has not done one single interview as himself in the UK since he became well-known in 1998. As Dan says, there is finally a reason to buy a copy of Rolling Stone magazine again.
Yeah?
Check this:
This has to be post ’98/ Not long after, but enough to make me call “shenanigans”.
“in the UK”, tom, “in the UK”
great clip though!
After seeing that, I’m somewhat less scared of his various characters.
damn fury.
But surely everyone in the UK knows now? he would be more likely to “damage the brand” if he appeared out of character in the US in A?
mystifying…
Tom
Tom, I believe at that point in Sacha’s career he could afford to appear as himself in the US, because Ali G was such a cult item.
You know, there is a radio host named Phil Hendrie who swims in similar waters. His “guests” are all him, on a filter mic, with him switching voices. He makes the characters say incredibly stupid and offensive things, and then REAL callers scream at them. Phil insists that no matter how often he does press, and even though he announces at least once per show that it’s not real, he’s never had a shortage of people who believe that the guests ARE real. It’s usually hilarious.
Sacha Baron Cohen has done some interviews as himself on talk shows in the US. I’d link to them to YouTube but it’s down at the moment. The ones I saw he described a few adventures playing Borat and wasn’t asked any tough questions.
Yeah he has, like this one:
This is a good one too:
I believe he has a=done a Daily Show interview as himself and not any of his characters sometime not recently. I love the Borat character.
Ah. “In the UK” I read to myself, which I apparantly missed the first time. LOL.