Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen is the king of provocateurs, a man whose button-pushing knows no limits. While “too far” may be where the comedian lives, his decision to pay O.J. Simpson $20k (£15,000) to appear in one of his films goes beyond all tasteful boundaries.
According to The Daily Mail, sources close to the production confirmed on Sunday that Baron Cohen met the disgraced Simpson in a Las Vegas hotel room wearing a “curly dark wig and black, thick-rimmed glasses” and agreed to pay him for an appearance in his film.
The source told The Mail, “OJ would not even get in the hotel room until he was paid a sackload of cash. There was no way Sacha could have got OJ into the room without paying money.”
For those too young to remember 1995 and haven’t bothered watching “The People vs. OJ Simpson” on Netflix, the former football star, a.k.a. “The Juice,” fell from stardom when he stood credibly accused of the murder of his wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend Ron Goldman. Though a jury acquitted Simpson in the infamous criminal trial, the football player-turned-actor was found liable for their deaths in the 1997 civil case. To this day, he still owes the Goldman and Brown family $70 million.
In 2007, justice found Simpson again when he was found guilty of armed robbery and kidnapping. Simpson was sentenced to 30 years in prison with the possibility of parole in nine years. For some reason, the Nevada parole board felt that a man with a history of domestic abuse and who was liable for the deaths of two innocent people was worthy of parole based on good behavior.
Needless to say, Baron Cohen’s shameless ploy has greatly upset both the Goldman and Brown families.
“Nicole and Ron are two human beings who were brutally murdered,” Nicole Brown’s sister Tanya said. “This is not a joke nor is it entertainment. If Sacha makes this a comedic effort his victims will be personified as a joke. Shame on him.”
The only silver lining to Sacha paying Simpson is that he will keep none of the money. Goldman family lawyer David Cook said, “If money changed hands, then all of the money paid should go to Ron’s father Fred. There is a legal and moral imperative here.”
When asked by The Daily Mail if he did indeed receive money from Baron Cohen, Simpson only confirmed that he met the comedian while not acknowledging the financial exchange.
“I know him well. I met him. Nice guy,” said Simpson.
Baron Cohen has issued no comment on the matter.