Casting is moving on apace at Paramount for Sacha Baron Cohen’s next film, The Dictator. While just last week it was revealed that Gillian Jacobs, Kristen Wiig and Anna Faris were all in contention for the female lead, now comes word that Faris has won the part and is in final negotiations.
Her casting comes hot on the heels of the news that Ben Kingsley and Jason Mantzoukas are also aboard, playing as-yet-unspecified Middle Eastern types, who interact with Baron Cohen’s dictator.
The Borat star is actually playing dual roles – he’ll crop up as a goat herder and also the central figure, a man who, according to the film’s description, “risked his life to ensure that democracy would never come to the country he so lovingly oppressed.” He doesn’t actually succeed in his mission, though – like some real-life rulers in recent months, he ends up deposed and, while he flees to the US, quickly gets lost. At some point, he’ll wash up in New York and meet Faris’ character, a woman who owns a trendy food store in the city.
With Larry Charles calling the shots, the plan is to shoot in the improvised style that the director and Cohen used for both Borat and Bruno, and anyone else in the cast will have to be quick on their feet.
The Dictator will start shooting next month in Spain and NYC. Faris will next crop up in romantic comedy What’s Your Number? alongside Joel McHale, Zachary Quinto and Captain America himself, Chris Evans.