Sacha Baron Cohen’s Ali G comeback sets release date after 24 years in a chaotic trailer
Ali G is back, and adulthood does not appear to have made him any more responsible. Sacha Baron Cohen has revived his tracksuit-wearing interviewer in the first trailer for ‘Ali G: Who Iz I?’ The Amazon MGM Studios comedy will open in theaters worldwide on October 23, marking the character’s return to the big screen after 24 years. It also brings Ali G into the hidden-camera format associated with Cohen’s later films.
The movie follows Ali G as family responsibility pushes him toward a trip to the United States. Amazon MGM Studios’ synopsis reads: “After 20 years spent chillin’, tokin’ and bonin’, Ali G is shocked to discover that his long-term girlfriend, Julie (Morgana Robinson), is eight months pregnant. Faced with an extra mouth to feed, he gets off his batty and heads to America to reclaim his former glory… but soon encounters adversaries who will ultimately threaten his and his child’s very existence.” Robinson plays Julie, Ali G’s girlfriend. The trailer reveals the setup for the first time.
The footage shows Cohen returning to the unsuspecting-interview style used in ‘Borat,’ ‘Brüno,’ and ‘Who Is America?’ One sequence places Ali G beside a pregnant woman while a doctor assesses her condition. He asks, “Do you think she’s preggers? Would you please just tell her that it’s probably wind or a big poo?” He then puts her positive pregnancy test in his mouth and declares that it “tastes of p*ss.”
The trailer also promises “the very latest TikTok trends” as Ali G turns his attention to internet culture. In another sequence, U.S. Brigadier General C. Stewart Rodeheaver wears cat-ear headphones and delivers an ASMR-style briefing about the war with Iran. The encounters indicate that the new movie will combine a continuing story about Ali G with real-world interactions. Cohen filmed the project in secret, following the approach used for several of his earlier mockumentaries.
Cohen first introduced Ali G on Channel 4’s ‘The 11 O’Clock Show’ in 1998 before the character received his own series ‘Da Ali G Show.’ The series later moved to HBO for two seasons and featured Ali G interviewing public figures, including Noam Chomsky, Andy Rooney, and Newt Gingrich. The 2002 movie ‘Ali G Indahouse,’ directed by Mark Mylod, followed a scripted format rather than the hidden-camera approach teased here. Cohen co-wrote and starred in that film.
‘Ali G: Who Iz I?’ also marks Cohen’s feature directorial debut. He wrote and produced the movie through his banner, Four by Two Films. The project reunites him with Amazon MGM Studios after ‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,’ which received two Academy Award nominations. ‘Ali G: Who Iz I?’ arrives in theaters on October 23.
