Sarah Palin May Not Even Appear on Sacha Baron Cohen’s ‘Who Is America?’ After All [TCA 2018]

Before the premiere of Sacha Baron Cohen’s new Showtime series Who Is America?, Sarah Palin made press rounds chastising Cohen for taking advantage of her. She said Cohen impersonated a veteran to trick her into being on his show, and she ultimately walked out of the interview when his questions became offensive.

Once Who Is America? premiered, we saw the character in question: Billy Wayne Ruddick, Jr., PhD. Ruddick does not purport to be a veteran, but does ride a motorized scooter to conserve his energy. Now it seems like Palin may have outted herself for nothing. Showtime President of Programming Gary Levine spoke with reporters at the Television Critics Association. Find out the fate of Palin’s interview and a second season below.

Did Sarah Palin Even Make the Cut?

The Palin controversy probably drove a lot of viewers to the premiere of Who Is America?. Now it’s been on for weeks and Palin has yet to appear.

“All I can say about that is there are several people who have thrown themselves in front of busses that may not be heading their way,” Levine said.

The process of making a documentary, even a comedic one, means that Cohen would shoot a lot of material and whittle it down. A lot of people get cut in the process, although you would think if he landed a get like Sarah Palin, he wouldn’t cut her out.

“Sacha is incredibly hard working and selective in the final product and he’s always refining and he has a very high bar, so we will see what we see,” Levine said.

And Cohen’s not afraid of Palin’s lawyers, Levine added.

“Oh, this is Sacha the comedian who just keeps working and working,” Levine said. “He’s refining stuff right up to the moment it goes on the air. He screens it in front of audiences. It looks like he’s doing it all off the cuff. It is remarkably organized, deeply researched and I am in awe of his work ethic and his team.”

Can There be a Second Season?

Once Borat got his own movie, Cohen could not perform Borat to unsuspecting people on the street anymore. Even Who Is America? involves much more elaborate costumes to conceal Cohen’s identity. Now that this show is a hit, the new characters of Who Is America? may become recognizable to his targets, making a second season difficult.

“Sacha does what he does better than anybody,” Levine said. “I think the desire is there. He’s enjoyed the time at Showtime. We’ve loved having him on our air and if there’s a way we can find to continue the show, we would love to do it.”

Right now, a second season is only hypothetical. “That’s up to Sacha,” Levine said. “There have been casual conversations, but really the goal has been to launch season 1 and he is knee-deep in it.”Who Is America? airs Sunday nights on Showtime.

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