Post by BIGFANBOY on Jul 3, 2008 15:54:29 GMT -5
SACHA BARON COHEN AND WILL FERRELL DETECT NEW COMEDY BASED ON CHARACTERS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES AND WATSON FOR COLUMBIA PICTURES
Photo from www.CinemaBlend.com
[/center]--Judd Apatow and Jimmy Miller to Produce--
CULVER CITY, Calif., July 2, 2008 – Comedy superstars Sacha Baron Cohen and Will Ferrell will team together for a Columbia Pictures comedy based on the renowned characters Sherlock Holmes and Watson, with Baron Cohen taking the role of the master detective and Ferrell as his partner in solving crime, Watson, it was announced today by Doug Belgrad and Matt Tolmach, presidents of Columbia Pictures. The screenplay will be written by Etan Cohen (Tropic Thunder). Judd Apatow and Jimmy Miller will produce.
The film will re-team Baron Cohen and Ferrell after their collaboration on the 2006 box office hit Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. The Sherlock Holmes characters by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle will inspire the screenplay, which will use the works as a starting point for the comedy.
Commenting on the announcement, Tolmach said, "Just the idea of Sacha and Will as Sherlock Holmes and Watson makes us laugh. Sacha and Will are two of the funniest and most talented guys on the planet and having them take on these two iconic characters is frankly hilarious."
SACHA BARON COHEN most recently appeared opposite Johnny Depp for director Tim Burton in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Baron Cohen was, until recently, best known to the public as his alter ego Ali G, the in-your-face host of HBO's popular multiple Emmy Award- nominated comedy variety/talk show "Da Ali G Show." The show was already the #1 comedy phenomenon in Baron Cohen's native England when he brought it to the United States, where it became an instant sensation on HBO. After completing two seasons, Baron Cohen set out to conquer the world with Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, a feature film starring his second alter ego Borat Sagdiyev, a Kazakhstani news reporter. Baron Cohen earned the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for his performance, as well as an Academy Award® nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Baron Cohen's past film projects include the hit feature comedy Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby which co-starred Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, and voicing King Julien, the lead character in DreamWorks Animation's Madagascar, which grossed over $500 million worldwide. He is set to reprise the role in the sequel to the animated hit.