Sacha Baron Cohen Banned From Oscars For Possible 'Dictator' Stunt?
Has Sacha Baron Cohen been banned from attending the Academy Awards on Sunday night? After word spread quickly on Wednesday that Cohen was planning to arrive on the red carpet for the ceremony dressed as his character from "The Dictator," Deadline.com's Nikki Finke reported that the prank-happy star had his tickets revoked.
The Academy later refuted those claims, telling the Los Angeles Times that no decision had yet been made about Cohen's credentials. (Finke later refuted that claim, writing that the Academy was backpedalling in the face of public outcry.) The comic was/is set to appear at the Oscars to help support "Hugo," where he co-stars as The Station Inspector.
Of course, whether Cohen ever intended to show up on the red carpet dressed as General Aladeen, the ousted North African despot at the center of "The Dictator," remains to be seen.
"Friend tells me Sacha Baron Cohen never had any plans to attend Oscars dressed like 'The Dictator' & he's loving the free publicity 4 the film," Variety reporter Jeff Sneider wrote on Twitter.
Tune in on Sunday night to see if Cohen actually shows up. "The Dictator" is in theaters on May 11.
[via Deadline.com, LAT/24 Frames]
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First Posted: 02/23/2012 8:04 am Updated: 02/23/2012 8:06 am