Rami Malek had the best-worst night of his life when his 2018 film Bohemian Rhapsody won the Golden Globe for Best Film. With Malek portraying the role of Freddie Mercury, he also won the Golden Globe for Best Actor, and the winner was announced by none other than his dear friend Nicole Kidman.
Although his film won a Golden Globe, Malek was humiliatingly stonewalled by Nicole Kidman (accidentally, of course!) but that moment became one of the most awkward encounters that Malek had ever faced. Case in point, the actor is still being made fun of today for the awkward encounter!
When Rami Malek Was Embarrassed By His Encounter With Nicole Kidman
Back in 2019, during the Golden Globes ceremony, the nominations for Best Film were announced. Rami Malek portrayed the character of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody and the film depicted the story of the formation of the iconic rock band Queen and Mercury’s personal life.
Revisiting the iconic songs, Bohemian Rhapsody was bound to win the award which it did and Rami Malek won the Golden Globe for Best Actor for his role in the movie. As he was going on stage, he was greeted by his old friend Nicole Kidman but the actress accidentally (or purposefully) did not notice Malek. When Malek extended his hand to greet her, Kidman turned around and greeted other celebrities and left Rami Malek hanging out awkwardly on stage.
The whole scene was captured by the camera crew of the Golden Globes and the clip fell into the hands of Jimmy Kimmel! In an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the duo of Kimmel and Malek talked about the awkward and embarrassing encounter between Rami Malek and Nicole Kidman.
“I’ve known her for many years despite as it may seem from this video” said Malek while trying to defend his encounter. “So I thought I could easily go up and say ‘Hi’ in a moment like that. Very awkward”
The actor further continued,
“I have a feeling this is probably haunting me”
Rami Malek wouldn’t have been the one to win a Golden Globe if the original members of Queen had decided to cast another actor instead. Talking about the film, Queen Drummer Roger Taylor stated that they had rejected iconic comedian Sacha Baron Cohen for the role of Freddie Mercury.
When Rami Malek Was Almost Replaced By Sacha Baron Cohen
Fans may remember Sacha Baron Cohen for famously portraying the role of Aladeen in The Dictator and Borat in his Borat films. Well, the comedic actor, known for his over-the-top and highly controversial comedies was considered for the role of Freddie Mercury for the 2018 biopic because he looked very similar. Drummer Roger Taylor talked to Rock Magazine (via Metro) about the casting of the actor.
“I think he would have been utter s**t. Sacha is pushy, if nothing else. He’s also six inches too tall. But I watched his last five films and came to the conclusion he’s not a very good actor… I thought he was an utterly brilliant subversive comedian, that’s what he’s great at.”
With great accolades and iconic awards to its name, Bohemian Rhapsody went on to win 4 Oscars with a rating of 7.9/10 on IMDB and 60% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Rami Malek starrer is available to stream on Hulu in the U.S.
