OFF THE HOOK?

Showtime Hints Sacha Baron Cohen’s Sarah Palin Segment May Not Air

“There are several people who have thrown themselves in front of buses that may not be headed their way.”

Showtime CEO David Nevins hinted this week that the highly anticipated Sarah Palin appearance on Sacha Baron Cohen’s Who Is America? series might never make it on the air. Asked by reporters at the network’s Television Critics Association’s press tour event on Monday when viewers can expect to see Palin’s segment, Nevins replied, “There are several people who have thrown themselves in front of buses that may not be headed their way.” Denying that the segment may be left on the cutting room floor for legal reasons, he added that Baron Cohen is “very hardworking and selective in [creating] the final product” and “always refining” the show up until the moment it airs. Palin was the first major political figure to admit that she had been “duped” by Baron Cohen for the show shortly before it premiered on Showtime. With three episodes left, one of the only other semi-prominent people who has claimed to be tricked by the comedian and not yet appeared on the show is former CNN contributor Jeffrey Lord.