>> James: PLEASE WELCOME THE INCREDIBLY TALENTED MARIA
BAKALOVA!
( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ) HI!
>> HI.
>> James: HOW ARE YOU?
SUPER HAPPY, SURE NERVOUS.
EXCITED, MAYBE MORE NERVOUS THAN WHEN SHOOTING THE MOVIE.
>> NO, YOU CAN'T BE MORE NERVOUS WHEN YOU'RE SHOOTING THE MOVIE
THAN TO BE HERE NOW.
WE SHOULD SAY THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME ON A LATE-NIGHT TALK SHOW.
>> YEAH.
AND WE'RE SO EXCITED THAT YOU'RE HERE.
WE'RE SO HAPPY THAT YOU'RE HERE.
EVERYTHING THAT'S BEEN HAPPENING TO YOU SINCE THE FILM CAME OUT,
THE FILM IS OBVIOUSLY A HUGE HIT, YOUR PERFORMANCE HAS BEEN
SINGLED OUT BY EVERYBODY.
WHAT'S LIFE BEEN LIKE SINCE THE FILM CAME OUT?
>> WHAT LIFE'S BEEN LIKE, I'M LUCKY TO LIVE HERE RIGHT NOW BUT
AT THE SAME TIME I'M LUCKY THAT IT'S NOT A GOOD THINGS BECAUSE
COVID SAVED ME.
I'M KIND OF WORRIED ABOUT IF COVID DOESN'T EXIST AND PEOPLE
DON'T WEAR MASKS THEY WILL PROBABLY RECOGNIZE ME AND
ESPECIALLY GIRLS ARE GOING TO SAY HELLO TO ME LIKE, HI!
( LAUGHTER ) >> James: I THINK THE REASON
PEOPLE ARE SO EXCITED ABOUT YOU AND YOUR CAREER RIGHT NOW IS YOU
HAVE TO ALL OF US COME FROM NOWHERE.
YOU MADE A COUPLE OF FILMS IN BULGARIA BEFORE.
>> YEAH.
>> James: YOU HAVEN'T DONE A COMEDY OR IMPROV BEFORE, AND 600
OTHER ACTORS AUDITIONED FOR THIS PART.
TALK TO ME ABOUT THE AUDITION PROCESS FOR A FILM LIKE BORAT.
>> YEAH, I'M COMING FROM BULGARIA, BUT, ACTUALLY, WHEN I
DID THE RECORDING, I DID IT AT 5:00 A.M. AFTER THE UNIVERSITY
AND MY FRIEND SHOWED IT AS A JOKE.
I THOUGHT, IT'S NOT A REAL AUDITION THEY'RE GOING TO DO
HUMAN TRAFFICKING ON ME.
>> James: THAT'S HONESTLY WHERE YOUR MIND WENT.
>> YEAH.
>> James: THEN YOU SEND IN THE TAPE, YOU REALIZE YOU'RE NOT
BEING HUMAN TRAFFICKED.
HOW MANY AWE CIGSINGS DO YOU GO THROUGH BEFORE YOU AUDITION FOR
IMPROV WITH SACHA.
>> IT WAS AFTER MY GRADUATION AND I FINALLY HAD MY DIPLOMA AND
I'M IMPROVISING SOMETHING THAT MY DADDY IS THE BEST DADDY IN
THE WHOLE FLAT WORLD BECAUSE HE GIVES ME CIGARETTES, HE ALLOWS
ME TO DRINK AND EVERYTHING IS AMAZING.
SO I SENT ANOTHER ONE AND ANOTHER ONE AND PROBABLY TWO
MORE AFTER THAT.
I FLY TO ENGLAND, MY MOM WAS CRYING, SHE WAS, LIKE, AM I EVER
GOING TO SEE YOU AGAIN?
I WAS, LIKE, MAYBE.
MAYBE IT'S GOING TO BE ALL RIGHT.
BUT, AT THE SAME TIME IT WAS, LIKE, IT'S GOING TO BE MY FIRST
TIME TRAVELING ALONE, I HAVE TO DO IT.
I WENT THERE AND SACHA WAS THERE, AN THAT'S HOW I STARTED.
>> James: THERE WAS SO MUCH SECRECY SURROUNDING THE MOVIE, I
MEAN, AM I RIGHT THAT YOU COULDN'T EVEN TELL YOUR PARENTS
WHAT YOU WERE DOING WHILST YOU WERE FILMING THE FILM.
SO WHEN DID THEY KNOW?
WHAT DID THEY THINK WHEN THEY SAW THE FILM?
>> MY MOM -- MY MOM FaceTimeED ME AFTER SHE WATCHED THE MOVIE,
AND SHE WAS SO SAD.
( LAUGHTER ) HER EYES WERE FULL OF TEARS.
SHE WAS CRYING FOR MAYBE TWO HOURS BECAUSE SHE'S KIND OF A
MASOCHIST, OBVIOUSLY, SHE WATCHED IT TWICE, AND SHE WAS
EVEN MORE SAD.
( LAUGHTER ) SHE WAS, LIKE --
( CRYING ) -- TUTAR -- IT'S SO SAD!
( LAUGHTER ) >> James: ONE OF THE MOST
TALKED ABOUT SCENES WAS YOUR INCIDENT WITH RUDY GIULIANI.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE FILMING THAT INTERVIEW?
>> NERVE RACKING.
MY HEART WAS RACING AND I WAS NERVOUS.
I WAS SCARED.
NOT SCARED SCARED BECAUSE SACHA WAS IN THE CLOSET, BUT --
>> James: FOR SURE.
AND WHEN SACHA OR BORAT BURSTS OUT AND WHEN HE'S DOING ALL
THOSE THINGS AND RUDY GIULIANI LEAVES, ARE YOU AND THE CREW,
LIKE, YEAH, GREAT, THAT'S GOOD, THAT'S HOW IT WORKS OUT.
IS THAT HOW IT WORKED OUT AT THE END OF A SHOOT DAY FOR ONE OF
THOSE SCENES?
>> RUDY GIULIANI DID ACTUALLY CALL THE POLICE, BUT WE DID
NOTHING ILLEGAL.
>> James: SURE.
SO WE LEFT THE PLACE TOGETHER, AND SO HOW WE CAN RUN
TOGETHER AND WE'RE HAPPY.
IT'S LIKE A FAMILY MOMENT.
>> James: SO WHEN YOU KNOW THAT HE'S CALLED -- WHEN YOU
KNOW THAT RUDY GIULIANI'S CALLED THE POLICE, DO YOU HAVE TO GET
OUT OF THERE QUITE QUICK?
>> YEAH.
( LAUGHTER ) >> James: SO YOU'RE, LIKE,
HE'S CALLED THE POLICE AND HE'S PACKING UP ALL THE EQUIPMENT AND
YOU'RE IN A VAN AND YOU'RE GONE?
>> YEAH.
( LAUGHTER ) >> James: WELL, I GOT TO TELL
YOU, I THINK YOUR PERFORMANCE IN THE FILM IS ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT
AND IT'S WORTHY OF ALL OF THE PRAISE YOU'RE GETTING IS
ABSOLUTELY DESERVED.
YOU COULD CHECK OUT MARIA IN BORAT'S SUBSEQUENT MOVIE FILM
STREAMING NOW ON AMAZON PRIME VIDEO.
MARIA BAKALOVA, EVERYBODY!
WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK AFTER THESE MESSAGES!
♪ ♪