Two versions on ‘Borat’ sequel
Does News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch know something his top lieutenants don’t?
Apparently so.
The media mogul announced Thursday in New York that his studio “will do a sequel” to last year’s surprise hit comedy “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” starring Sacha Baron Cohen.
“He will first do something else ... then he wants to come back and do a ‘Borat 2,’ ” Murdoch said at a media summit.
But after Murdoch’s remarks were reported by the media, including the Calendar section in today’s Times, News Corp.’s 20th Century Fox studio squelched the sequel talk. “We’re eager to work with Sacha again and we’ve had casual discussions about a sequel, which we’d love to do,” a Fox spokesman said. “But at this point, it remains too preliminary to discuss.”
“Borat” has grossed $248 million worldwide. Nonetheless, Murdoch backed Fox’s decision to pass on Baron Cohen’s new “mockumentary,” “Bruno,” because the terms were deemed too rich.
*