The show must go on, even when your first choice for the lead in your biopic doesn't
work out.
Queen drummer Roger Taylor recently offered a few thoughts as to why Sacha Baron Cohen,
who was once set to play Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody, ended up being let go from
the project.
Cohen, the English comedian and performer known for his movies Borat and Bruno, as well
as the TV shows Da Ali G Show and Who Is America, was confirmed in 2010 to be taking on the
role of Freddie Mercury in the Queen bio-pic Bohemian Rhapsody.
In a recent Associated Press interview, Taylor delved into details as to why Cohen, who bears
a remarkable physical resemblance to Mercury, ended up departing the project in 2013.
Queen guitarist Brian May, as well as Cohen himself, have previously stated that Cohen's
exit amounted to differences of opinion over exactly what type of film Bohemian Rhapsody
would be.
Apparently, Cohen and Queen didn't see eye to eye, a major problem, considering the legendary
rock band had the final say over the script.
To hear Taylor explain it, the film may have turned out very differently if Cohen's artistic
whims had been allowed to dictate the course of the project.
The musician went so far as to insinuate that the fracture was largely Cohen's fault.
As Taylor put it,
"There was a lot of talk about Sacha and stuff.
It was never really on.
I don't think he took it seriously enough, didn't take Freddie seriously enough."
A 2016 interview with Cohen on The Howard Stern Show seems to illustrate Cohen's side
of the story, with the comic seeming far more interested in portraying the wild, debauched
side of Mercury, as opposed to the legendary vocalist's career highlights and significant
relationships.
"There are amazing stories about Freddie Mercury. Crazy. Crazy.
"the guy was wild. he was living an extreme lifestyle."
Despite foreseeing possible conflicts between his vision and the band's desire to "protect
their legacy", and avoid an R rating, Cohen plugged away on the project for years, pitching
potential screenwriters and directors to the band.
One major sticking point, which Cohen also related in his Howard Stern interview, was
that in his initial meeting with Queen, an unnamed band member asserted that Mercury's
death would actually occur in the middle of the film, and that the second half of the
movie would explore how the band regrouped and carried on without him.
It's a prospect Cohen found ridiculous, considering Queen's largely retrospective post-Mercury
career.
Amusingly, even after getting rid of Cohen, the finished movie doesn't feature Freddie's
death, not in the middle, nor anywhere else.
So this supposed sticking point seems to have turned out not to matter much at all.
Queen guitarist Brian May previously made comments around the time of Cohen's initial
firing, which also seem to line up nicely with Taylor's assessment of the situation.
Speaking with Rolling Stone, May said,
"He makes outstanding performances, but they're very much Sacha Baron Cohen performances.
And we thought there has to be no distraction in the Freddie movie.
You have to really suspend that disbelief, the man who plays Freddie, you have to really
believe is Freddie.
And we didn't think that could really happen with Sacha."
According to the Queen bandmates' version of events, it seems that Cohen's outsized
personality was somehow incompatible with the role of the famously flamboyant Mercury.
In that sense, while Cohen's interpretation may have been just fine for a lurid, R-rated
tell-all, it just wouldn't have been appropriate for the more straightforward, near-mythical
retelling of Mercury's story that the singer's surviving bandmates were intent on realizing.
Fortunately, the bandmates found their Mercury with the casting of Mr. Robot actor Rami Malek,
who has already drawn widespread critical acclaim for his portrayal.
Taylor, for his part, is over the moon about Malek's casting.
As he told the Associated Press,
"He's amazing.
Thank God we found him.
He's just an incredible guy, in every way.
He's lovely to be around, he's dedicated utterly, and he's incredibly talented.
[...] We couldn't have done better."
Audiences seem to agree that Malek's nailed the part.
In its first week of release in the U.K., Bohemian Rhapsody made a huge impression,
beating out the likes of Halloween and A Star is Born to claim the top spot at the box office,
and American moviegoers won't have to wait long to see what the fuss is all about.
Is the finished product a killer queen, or a sheer heart attack?
That's for you to decide, but at least the band sounds happy.