PUSHING BACK

Sacha Baron Cohen Mocks Campaign to Boycott His New Movie

The provocateur is trying to get ahead of the mounting backlash.

Sacha Baron Cohen is hitting back at critics who say his latest Ali G revival “enforces racist stereotypes.”

Dressed in elaborate prosthetics as a balding progressive activist, Baron Cohen, 54, posted a satirical take on the backlash against his upcoming mockumentary, Ali G: Who Iz I?

“I’m here on behalf of the Campaign for Ethical Comedy,” Baron Cohen said (in character) in the video. “I’m sure you’ve heard of our five Cs: Consider, contextualize, consult community, and obtain consent before you laugh—That’s right, do the work before you smirk.”

He adds, still in character, “Regarding the Ali G trailer, it’s so sad that Sacha Baron Cohen cannot come up with a new character, so I urge you to boycott this Ali G movie.”

The snarky parody follows the trailer for Who Iz I?, which prompted a campaign asking theaters not to play the film when it’s released on Oct. 23. According to media bias organization NewsCord, nearly 56,000 concerned fans have joined the campaign to ask local theaters to block the film.

Backlash to the trailer includes complaints about the faux wannabe rapper character wearing fake dreadlocks and a Rastafarian hat. Critics argue that the caricature is also intensified by Ali G’s declaration to an interviewer that he aspires to be an “absent” father.

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Racism accusations have followed the character since shortly after he debuted it in 1998. The character made Baron Cohen a star on Da Ali G Show, but a 2000 report on the perspectives of Black comedians called the caricature an “alibi for racism.” He later made the 2002 Ali G film Ali G in Da House before retiring the character in 2007. Amazon MGM Studios is behind its revival.

To tease the comeback in July, the actor donned the character’s classic yellow-tinted sunglasses, skull cap, and thick gold chain while pretending to sell weed at Wimbledon. He showed off the stunt in a post on Instagram with the caption, “I iz BACK! And if u iz at dis borin wimbledore final lookin 2 get grand slammed, I iz here wif de hookup 🌱🍄❄️💊💉 dm me, especially if u iz fit.”

To promote the trailer, Baron Cohen once again framed backlash around “political correctness.” He wrote in an unapologetic post on X, “In an age where a comedian’s career can be ended by a single un-PC joke, I thought I’d play it safe and bring this guy back.”

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Mere hours after Variety reported on NewsCord’s campaign in August, Baron Cohen posted a video of himself speaking at the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington in 2023 and blocked fans from commenting. “The power of unity is exactly why those who stand in the way of equality and freedom seek to divide us. They appeal to the worst instincts of humanity, which often simmer just below the surface,” he says in the clip.

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Eboni Boykin-PattersonEntertainment Reporter

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