Sacha Baron Cohen is the living embodiment of a clown, a trait he regards as a point of pride. Regardless of whether you like him or not, there’s no arguing that Sacha makes us think.
We all know Borat and Bruno, but little is known about the man behind the mask . That’s why I’ve compiled these 10+ random facts about Sacha Baron Cohen that fans didn’t know.
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One of his earliest acting jobs was in a commercial for McCain’s french-fries.
Did you spot him? If I’m being honest, at first I thought Sacha was the woman playing ping pong.
It turns out that he’s actually the chef in the white apron.
He owes a lot of his success to a total clown.
Philippe Gaulier is a performance art legend. This Parisian master has trained everyone from Sacha Baron Cohen to Helena Bonham Carter.
Philippe is thought to be one of, if not the only person on earth, who can teach you how to be truly funny.
Sacha used to work as a male-model.
At this time in his life, Sacha was still a struggling writer and actor. In order to make ends meet, he worked as a fashion model in his early 20s.
Very nice, Sacha.
Peter Sellers is his idol.
Peter Sellers was a legendary comedian, known for playing the clumsy Inspector Clousseau in The Pink Panther .
Sacha has stated that one of the things he always admired about Sellers was his ability to bridge the gap between comedy and satire. Sound familiar?
He’s married to Isla Fisher.
Isla and Sacha celebrated their ten-year-anniversary this past March. The pair have three children together and do their best to stay out of the public eye.
Which probably comes pretty easy for Sacha, considering his innate ability to blend in.
Ryan Seacrest doesn’t think he’s funny.
Ryan was working the red carpet when the time came to interview Sacha, who was in full-blown Dictator mode. Their interview concludes with Sacha spilling the ashes of Kim Jong-il all over Ryan’s tux.
Don’t worry though, apparently it was only pancake mix.
He’s been sued several times over.
If you end up getting ‘got’ by Sacha Baron Cohen, odds are you’re going to be made to look like an idiot, a racist, a redneck — or all of the above.
He’s been sued for nearly every character he’s ever portrayed.
Sacha began his career on *The 11 O’Clock Show*.
The 11 O’Clock Show was a spoof on the nightly news. It helped launch Sacha’s career, as well as fellow comedian, Ricky Gervais!
This was where Ali G was first introduced to the world!
The FBI actually had a file on Borat!
Post 9/11 was a paranoid time in the United States. So when the police kept getting calls about a Middle-Eastern man driving around cities in an ice cream truck , they decided to follow up.
Sacha was barred from filming *The Dictator* at the UN.
Sacha was confused as to why a film that was pro-democracy would be banned from filming inside the UN?
He was told that many dictators are represented by the UN and that they didn’t want to risk upsetting them.
He almost played Freddie Mercury in *Bohemian Rhapsody*.
Sacha had been developing a Freddie Mercury biopic for more than six years. After a very public and messy battle with the surviving members of Queen, Sacha was replaced.
Queen wanted a movie about the band’s legacy, whereas Sacha only wanted to tell the story of Freddie.
He’s known for pranking politicians.
One of the best pranks that Sacha ever pulled involved the former Vice President of the United States — DickCheney.
Sacha presented him with a waterboard (the kind used to torture POWs) and asked for an autograph. To which Cheney happily obliged.
Sacha and Donald Trump go way back.
It’s too bad that Donald Trump has had so many negative things to say about Sacha throughout the back end of 2020.
Clearly, he forgets one of the most iconic interviews he ever gave.
Sacha fed the media fake news stories about *The Dictator*.
Many people were concerned that Sacha would become a target of Muammar al-Qaddafi.
In order to dissuade such an attack, Sacha and his team created a story that the film was really based on a romance novel — written by Sadam Hussein !
