Ali G Returns, Turning His Political Persona Into the Punchline
WHO:
The Guardian - Michael Aboud, chair of the El Paso County Republican Party, said he intends to sue Sacha Baron Cohen over footage used in *Ali G: Who Iz I?*
The Guardian - Aboud said Baron Cohen and the film crew were “a bunch of liars” and called Cohen “a pervert”; he said, “I plan to sue him.”
The Guardian - The film features Aboud and Joshua Loudermilk, a former preacher and aspiring actor, alongside Cohen’s character Col Erran Morad.
The Guardian - George Santos, a disgraced former Republican congressman, appears in a film game-show segment and said he was unaware of the film’s true nature.
Deadline - Sacha Baron Cohen is associated with the film *Ali G: Who Iz I?* and its title character, Ali G.
Variety - Sacha Baron Cohen brings back Ali G, described as a “cretinous fake OG talk-show host.”
Variety - The film makes Ali G the “doofus antihero” of its story.
WHAT:
The Guardian - Aboud said he believed he was participating in a nonfiction film about immigrants crossing the border, and was later told a self-defense instructor from Israel would be added.
The Guardian - The film depicts Morad training Aboud and other MAGA sympathizers in self-defense, including a stunt involving protective plastic buttocks and a rubber penis.
The Guardian - The plot depicts Aboud and Loudermilk helping Morad abduct Ali G’s girlfriend, Julie, and transport her in a kebab van disguised as an ambulance to an abandoned medical facility.
The Guardian - The film depicts the men placing a lifelike prosthetic baby in a zipped bag and driving toward Mexico; Aboud later drops a baby dangling from a drone to prevent it touching US soil.
The Guardian - A film segment shows contestants stuffing mannequins depicting “undesirables” into pretend shower cubicles before a button appears to release Zyklon B; it ends with a mass Nazi salute.
The Guardian - Santos said that, in the game, next time he would try to grab more babies because they are easier to fit in the shower.
Deadline - The reviewer says *Ali G: Who Iz I?* features real, unsuspecting participants and jokes that the film could merit a new Oscar category for “Best Clearances.”
Variety - The review describes the film as an absurdist saga in which Ali G becomes its “political” subject.
Variety - The film has “scattered funny moments,” but the reviewer calls it “dawdling and cumbersome” and says it is less relevant than it thinks.
Variety - The reviewer compares the film’s format to the *Saturday Night Live* movies *MacGruber*, *Stuart Saves His Family*, and *A Night at the Roxbury*.
WHY:
The Guardian - Aboud said he was unaware he had participated in a film until the Guardian contacted him; the film says Aboud and Loudermilk were not “in on it.”
The Guardian - Film representatives said Loudermilk was unaware of the project’s true nature, though his social-media posts described spending 12 hours with Cohen and linked to the film’s trailer.
Deadline - The reviewer’s “Best Clearances” remark refers to the film’s use of real, unsuspecting people who participated in it.
Variety - The review’s criticism is that the film’s political subject matter and claimed relevance are not matched by its execution.
HOW:
Deadline - The article characterizes the film as an outrageous comedy involving real, unsuspecting participants.
Variety - The film turns Ali G from a fake talk-show host into the central character and political subject of its own story.
(UPDATED October 22, 2026 17:15 UTC)
Michael Aboud, chair of the El Paso County Republican Party, says he plans to sue Sacha Baron Cohen over footage in *Ali G: Who Iz I?* Aboud says he believed he was taking part in a nonfiction film about immigrants crossing the border, and didn’t realize he had appeared in a comedy until he was contacted about it. The film casts Cohen’s Ali G as its central character and features Aboud and former preacher Joshua Loudermilk in a plot involving self-defense training, an abduction and a fake baby. Aboud says he and the crew were “a bunch of liars,” and called Cohen “a pervert.” The film also includes George Santos in a game-show segment; Santos says he didn’t know the project’s true nature. One review calls the film cumbersome and less relevant than it thinks, despite scattered funny moments.
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(UPDATED October 22, 2026 16:23 UTC)
Sacha Baron Cohen brings Ali G back to the screen in *Ali G: Who Iz I?*, making the character the central figure in an absurdist comedy with political ambitions. The film recasts the cretinous fake OG talk-show host as a doofus antihero and the story’s political subject. Its outrageous comedy also involves real people who are unaware they are participating. One review jokes that the movie could inspire a new Oscar category: “Best Clearances,” a nod to getting those people’s participation cleared. Another review finds scattered funny moments but calls the film dawdling and cumbersome, arguing that its execution doesn’t support its claims of relevance. It also compares the format to the *Saturday Night Live* films *MacGruber*, *Stuart Saves His Family*, and *A Night at the Roxbury*.