NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News
The Borat Subsequent Moviefilm song ‘Wuhan Flu’ has made this year’s Oscars shortlist.
The track, performed by Sacha Baron Cohen in last year’s sequel film, is in the running to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
‘Wuhan Flu’ is one of 15 original songs to be shortlisted this year, alongside tracks from Minari, Judas and the Black Messiah, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga and more. Check out the full shortlist here.
Cohen performs the song, written by his older brother Erran Baron Cohen, at a far-right rally in Washington while disguised as a bluegrass singer.
Last year, Erran said he would love to perform the song at the forthcoming Oscars ceremony.
“I would love to, if we could travel then,” Erran told The Hollywood Reporter. “I think that would be one of the best things that would ever happen at the Oscars. It would make it the most interesting Oscars ceremony ever.”
He added: “The issue of course is that it’s a racist song. It’s highlighting the racism in people. I think we could easily change the lyrics. I think it might be funny to do that and make a special version that was maybe more appropriate.
“We’ve got eight minutes of stuff already. But times may have changed by then anyway and we might have something else to talk about.”
In a three-star review of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, NME said: “There are still scenes of stunning impropriety, but they are fewer in number. It’s strange to say, given Twitter’s perpetual state of indignation, but a lot of what Borat says in this movie won’t seem scandalous.”
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