Sacha Noam Baron Cohen is a British actor born into a Jewish family on 13 October 1971. He attended Cambridge University where he studied History.
However, in the late 90’s he decided to change his career path to follow his passion: acting. He is best known for the roles he played in Ali G, Borat, Bruno, and The dictator films. He adopts various accents while disguising himself in each of his roles.
Net Worth and Earnings
The current net worth of Sacha Baron Cohen is estimated to be $160 million. This valuation can be justified when we put into consideration his income-generating activities. It is well known that great movies pay well. Sacha has 51 movie credits to his name. Some of his greatest hits include Madagascar (2005), Borat (2006), The Dictator (2012) among others.
Besides being a well-decorated actor, Cohen is also a talented Scriptwriter, director, and producer. Sacha earns extra income from his several behind the scene roles.
Some of his movie productions like Borat’s Subsequent films, Borat (2006), and The Dictator (2012) are considered to be a great success. He also rakes in additional income by renting out his Hollywood Hills and Laurel Canyon mansions. He has also appeared in a music video for Madonna in 2000 as his character Ali G.
Acting Career and Awards
Baron Cohen has earned several accolades and nominations for his characters. In 2001, he received the British Academy Television Award for his role in Da Ali G Show.
In 2006, Borat earned him the Golden Globe Award with Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and also earned him the award once more in 2020.
The Borat Subsequent Moviefilm also earned him the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2021. The Trial of the Chicago 7 earned him two nominations and the Screen Actors Guild Award.
Additionally, he has received several nominations for his films for various awards that have propelled his success. Amongst the most notable nominations include Best Actor miniseries film and the Golden Globe Award in his role in The Spy.
Controversies and Lawsuits
Despite having a successful career that has led to a lot of great paydays and awards, one of his movie productions, to be specific “Who is America”, earned him lawsuits that could have been a threat to his wealth if they had been ruled in favour of the plaintiff.
The former Alabama Chief justice Roy Moore cited defamation and emotional distress accusations against Baron Cohen.
Moore claimed that in the show’s (Who is America) third episode, Cohen in character as Erran Morad alleged that he had assaulted and harassed several ladies not excluding underage girls.
He stated that this was implied where Morad had a paedophile detecting gadget that beeped whenever it was pointed at Moore. The former judge believed it is because of these allegations that he lost the 2017 senatorial election race.
It is for this reason that Moore went ahead and filed a defamation case against Sacha Baron Cohen demanding $ 95 million in compensation for damaged reputation.
Fortunately for Sacha Baron Cohen, in July 2021 a federal judge, ended a years-long legal battle between the comedian and former U.S. Senate candidate when he dismissed Moore’s lawsuit, saying Cohen’s claims were “clearly a joke and no reasonable viewer would have seen it otherwise.”
Personal Life
Sacha married Australian actress Isla Fisher in a Jewish ceremony in Paris in 2010. They have three children, two daughters, Olive and Elula and a son, Montgomery.
