Sacha Baron Cohen Still Working On ‘The Lesbian’, Reveals It’s A Musical
Sacha Baron Cohentakes his time picking his projects. He’s got two big films coming out this year, the spy comedyThe Brothers Grimsbyand the Disney fantasy sequelAlice Through the Looking Glass, and they’re his first onscreen roles since 2012’sLes Misérables. Beyond that, his future is a little bit murkier. So what’s next for the committed comedian who gave us Borat, Ali G, and Brüno? Will he lay low for another several years, or does he have another movie lined up?
As it turns out, Baron Cohen’s plan is to get back to work on an old project of his that’s never quite gotten off the ground:The Lesbian, which we first heard about in 2012. And now he’s served up the intriguing detail thatThe Lesbianis actually a musical. Read his comments below.
JoBlo’s Eric Walkuskicaught up with Baron Cohen at a recent press event forThe Brothers Grimsby. Here’s what the writer/actor had to say aboutThe Lesbian:
The true story Baron Cohen is referring to isGigi Chao’s. In 2012, the Hong Kong businesswomanmade international headlineswhen her father, billionaire tycoonCecil Chao, publicly offered $65 million to any man who could successfully woo his daugher away from her (female) partner, with whom she’d eloped in France. Would-be suitors came pouring in, but Cecil Chao ultimatelyrescinded the offer in 2014after his daughterpublished a heartfelt open letterasking him to accept her homosexuality.
As of 2012, Baron Cohen was confirmed to produceThe Lesbian, and looked likely to star as well. There’s no word yet on who’s writing the script, who might direct, or when we might see it in theaters.
The facts of Chao’s story already sound tailor-made for a Hollywood adaptation, and a musical sounds like a fun, unusual way to bring this stranger-than-fiction saga to life. Plus, Baron Cohen’s already shown an affinity for the format. BesidesLes Misérables, he also co-starred inSweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
