Borat made his triumphant return in time for the 2020 election. Sacha Baron Cohen revived his iconic character for the sequel to, well, troll politicians, largely Republicans. Unfortunately for the comedian, the use of his image has been taken outside of the political sphere and into the cannabis industry which is now at the center of a new lawsuit.
Arnold Turner/Getty Images
According to BBC, Cohen filed a lawsuit against medical cannabis company Solar Therapeutic who allegedly took his image and put it on a billboard in Massachusetts to promote their brand. Cohen said that the image of Borat was placed next to a 4/20 promo poster along with his catchphrase, “It’s nice.”
Cohen’s lawyer said that the company “took a gamble” by using the actor’s image for their promotion with hopes that he wouldn’t see it.
Cohen said that he doesn’t smoke weed at all and has no connection to the company in any way. He added that even if they had approached him to use his image, he would’ve refused to be the face of a campaign for weed.
The English comedian is suing Solar Therapeutic for copyright infringement and is seeking $9 million in damages. He’s also demanding that the court orders an injunction preventing the company from using his name, image, and likeness to sell their products.