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UK exhibitor Picturehouse Cinemas has confirmed they won’t screen Sacha Baron Cohen’s upcoming comedy film “Ali G: Who Iz I?” when it releases in October.
According to Metro, the decision comes in the wake of an online campaign by media watchdog platform NewsCord that demands that cinemas worldwide refuse to screen the comedian’s new satire.
The reasoning? They allege Baron Cohen has ‘enforced harmful stereotypes across marginalised communities through his characters’ and that distributor Amazon MGM has ‘revived a racist caricature’ with the film.
Ali G was created as a white man from Staines who blindly adopts slang, dress and mannerisms he associates with Black British culture, with the comedy focused on the character’s own ignorance and obliviousness.
Picturehouse controls 25 cinemas across the UK and, in a statement to the paper, says: “We currently do not have any plans to screen this film on its release”.
The trailer for the mockumentary was released earlier this week with the fictional character ambushing unsuspecting real people and public figures.
The “Borat” star has expected controversy, responding to negative reactions to the trailer on X the other day with: “In an age where a comedian’s career can be ended by a single un-PC joke, I thought I’d play it safe and bring this guy back.”
More than 34,000 emails have reportedly been sent to cinema chains as part of NewsCord’s campaign.
Even so, no other distributors have seemingly followed suit while a poster on Reddit claims Picturehouse frequently doesn’t carry movies that go into other multiplexes – including their parent company Cineworld – and advises “I wouldn’t read too much into this.”
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