His fictional Borat character purposefully finds himself in awkward situations with popular figures around the world, and with each scene, viewers are left wondering how Sacha Baron Cohen was able to pull it off. It was back in 2006 when we were first introduced to Borat, the Kazakhstani journalist who traveled to America in order to film a documentary. He met with a number of celebrities and heads of state for interviews where they were unaware that their interactions were all a bit for a comedy film.
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“It got two dangerous,” Baron Cohen told Entertainment Tonight. “There were a couple of times I had to put on a bulletproof vest to go and shoot a scene, and you don’t want to do that too many times in your life. I was pretty lucky to get out this time, so no, I’m not doing it again. I’m going to stay with the scripted stuff.”
In the most recently released Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, Cohen recalled attending a far-right rally that created real concerns for him and his production team. They fitted him with a bullet-proof vest and production had an “amplifier” created for Cohen to hide behind if necessary.
“The night before something like that — that rally — you’re trying to go through everything that can go wrong,” he added. “In a normal scene like what we’re doing, we’re trying to make sure, ‘How do I make sure my performance is real? Have I done my research? How do I make sure the accent’s perfect?’ In this one you’re going, ‘Okay, if a bunch of guys with guns come from that side of the stage, have I got a way to get out? What happens if someone shoots me? What if a bunch of people start shooting me?’ “
“Yeah, I don’t want to do it again. I got away with it. I’m not pushing my luck again.”
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