Ali G is back… Sacha Baron Cohen’s iconic character is returning in a new film that has been shot in secret.
As reported by Variety, the forthcoming movie has already wrapped production.
Making his debut in 1998 on the Channel 4 series The 11 O’Clock Show, Ali G is a swaggering wannabe gangster whose clueless interview questions make for surreal interactions with his guests. Noam Chomsky, Donald Trump, and Newt Gingrich are among those to have been interviewed by the character.
Ali G proved to be such a hit among fans that the character became the focus of his own series. Da Ali G Show ran for three seasons in the early Noughties before coming to an end in 2004. Cohen, 54, won over American fans when the series aired in the US on HBO.
Da Ali G Show also introduced other beloved characters of Cohen’s including outrageous Kazakh journalist Borat and vapid Austrian TV host Bruno – both of whom received their own feature film outings.
The forthcoming film, which is yet to be officially announced, follows the success of 2002s’ Ali G Indahouse, which also starred Michael Gambon and Charles Dance.
A spokesperson for Cohen declined to comment when contacted by Variety. The Independent has reached out to a representative for the actor.
Not everyone was a fan of Ali G, however. Around the time of his debut, comedians including Curtis Walker and Felix Dexter criticised Cohen’s creation.
“I feel a lot of the humour is laughing at Black street culture and it is being celebrated because it allowed the liberal middle classes to laugh at that culture in a safe context where they can retain their sense of political correctness,” said Dexter of The Real McCoy comedy series.
Speaking about Ali G in a 2016 appearance on WTF With Marc Maron, Cohen said he “couldn’t really exist” because he is so stupid. “Part of Ali G was an attempt, subtly, to slightly undermine the establishment.”
It is the first time since 2020’s Borat sequel that Cohen has revisited any of his renowned comedic creations from the 1990s and 2000s.
Filmed in the US, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm made headlines after Rudy Giuliani was caught in a compromising position with Maria Bakalova, the actor playing Borat’s TV journalist daughter.
In footage obtained with concealed cameras in a hotel room, the former New York mayor and personal attorney to Donald Trump is seen reaching into his trousers while reclining on a bed in a hotel room in the presence of Bakalova who is in character.
They are then interrupted by Borat who enters the room and says: “She’s 15. She’s too old for you.” Giuliani insisted that he was “tucking in his shirt”.
In addition to his comedic work, Cohen has garnered acclaim for his dramatic parts recently earning Oscar nomination for his role as Abbie Hoffman in Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7.