Photo: WENN
Sacha Baron Cohen has explained why he decided to leave the long-delayed Freddie Mercury biopic, saying the remaining members of the band wanted to "depict [themselves] as great as possible."
Cohen was attached to the film back in 2010, but dropped out three years later. He's since been replaced by Ben Whishaw, known for his roles in Cloud Atlas, Lilting and the Bond films.
When Cohen dropped out, it was rumoured that he was aiming for a less PG version than the story the band wanted to tell. In a new interview with Howard Stern, Cohen pretty much confirmed that.
"The problem is - and I think it’s with any biopic, and I fully understand why Queen wanted to do this - if you’re in control of your rights and your life story, why wouldn’t you depict yourself as great as possible?" he explained.
He added, "A member of the band - I won't say who - said, 'You know, this is such a great movie because it's got such an amazing thing that happens in the middle of the movie.' And I go, 'What happens in the middle of the movie?' He goes, 'You know, Freddie dies.' ... I go, 'What happens in the second half of the movie?' He goes, 'We see how the band carries on from strength to strength.' I said, 'Listen, not one person is going to a movie where the lead character dies from AIDS and then you carry on to see how the band carries on.'"
Listen to Sacha Baron Cohen's interview with Howard Stern here.
