The comedian famous for mocking powerful people just admitted one of his biggest targets might have outsmarted everyone.
Sacha Baron Cohen says Donald Trump has shown real Sacha Baron Cohen Donald Trump brilliance, telling Variety on October 23, 2026, that people were "too easy to dismiss" Trump as unintelligent. The comments came as Baron Cohen promoted his new film, Ali G: Who Iz I?, which revives the character who first interviewed Trump back in 2003.
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Sacha Baron Cohen Donald Trump brilliance comment explained
Baron Cohen did not hold back when Variety asked him about Trump's long run in politics. "I mean, how has he survived a second term? People underestimated him," he said. "We were too easy to dismiss him as a nincompoop. There are elements of brilliance to him, otherwise."
He then connected that idea directly to Trump's political staying power. "And that explains his appeal with the fact that he's there for a second term, the fact that he's transforming this country. I won't say positively or negatively," Baron Cohen said. That last line matters. He praised Trump's ability to survive and win, but he refused to call the results good or bad for the country.
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Why the Donald Trump Ali G interview still matters
Baron Cohen's comments carry extra weight because of history. Back in 2003, Trump sat down with Ali G on Da Ali G Show, long before The Apprentice made him a household name and decades before he entered presidential politics. During that interview, Baron Cohen reportedly pitched Trump on a fake business idea involving special gloves meant to stop ice cream from making hands sticky.
Trump has told his own version of that story. According to CBS News, Trump later claimed, "I never fall for scams. I am the only person who immediately walked out of my 'Ali G' interview." Baron Cohen gave a different account in 2020 on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, saying Trump grew visibly annoyed once he realized the guy in the tracksuit asking odd questions was the actual interviewer, not some polished British producer he expected to meet.
Ali G: Who Iz I brings back the character after 20 years
The new remarks landed right as Baron Cohen's film hit theaters on October 23, 2026. It marks his first major return to the Ali G persona in roughly two decades, and Variety reports it is scheduled to stream on Amazon Prime starting October 30. Other outlets, including Yahoo, noted that Amazon MGM has been inconsistent with streaming timelines before, so that date could still shift.
The movie is also being described as Baron Cohen's directorial debut. Deadline reported the film includes a storyline with his other character, former Mossad agent Erran Morrad, who pulls together a group of Trump-supporting characters for a wild fictional mission. CBS News described the movie as funny but also unsettling, built to call out extreme views on both the political left and right. The Daily Beast went further, predicting the film will anger people across the political spectrum.
Reviews question whether Ali G still works today
Not everyone is convinced the Ali G revival lands the way it used to. Variety's review raised doubts about whether the character still has bite or whether it has turned into pure nostalgia. The BBC posed a similar question, asking directly if Ali G has gone past his "sell-by date" in a media world where audiences already expect prank interviews and viral stunts.
The AV Club pointed back to how Baron Cohen himself described the joke in 2024, saying the whole concept was built on taking "the most stupid person in the world" and placing him next to a true expert, whether that expert was astronaut Buzz Aldrin or a powerful political figure. That contrast, between a fake fool and a serious public figure, is exactly what made the original Trump interview work two decades ago.
What comes next for Baron Cohen and the film
For now, attention is split between two things. One is Baron Cohen's surprising read on Trump's political survival, calling it a mix of underestimated skill and undeniable staying power. The other is whether his old comedy trick still lands with modern audiences who have seen countless prank videos and staged interviews online.
The film's theatrical run continues alongside its planned Amazon Prime arrival on October 30. There is no confirmed sequel, no official Trump response to the new comments, and no word yet on whether Baron Cohen plans to bring Ali G back again after this release. What is clear is that a comedy bit from 2003 is still shaping conversation more than twenty years later.
