Ali G: Who Iz I? is praised for 'pushing comedy to its limits' but not everyone is a fan as Sacha Baron Cohen's mockumentary on cancel culture receives mixed reviews

After 20 years, Ali G is officially back, with Sacha Baron Cohen's new mockumentary released in cinemas on Friday. 

And in true Ali G style, the film has polarised viewers, earning a 50 per cent 'rotten' critics rating on reviews aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. 

The new film, Ali G: Who Iz I?, charts the wannabe gangster's life 'since the world went to crap' as he prepares to welcome his first child with girlfriend Julie, played by Morgana Robinson, 44.

There have been calls to boycott the film over claims that Ali G is offensive for perpetuating stereotypes, with Baron Cohen revealing his life was threatened. 

Yet the 55-year-old actor has been praised for 'pushing comedy to its limits', with The Times' Ed Potton awarding the film four stars and noting: 'The plot of the film is shamelessly flimsy and not all of the gags land, but when they do they are hilarious.' 

Nick Schager of The Daily Beast also praised the film with a 'fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes, penning: 'Despite its inherent limitations and more than a handful of easy-target gags, it’s always mildly amusing and, on a couple of memorable occasions, legitimately laugh-out-loud funny.'

Another 'fresh' rating came from The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck, who noted: 'Cohen is so naturally funny and quick with improvisation that there are plenty of laughs along the way.

'And while much of the material is offensive, that’s really the point. But the humour starts to drag with the feature-length running time.'

Not won over by Ali G was The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw, who awarded the film two stars, saying: 'If you liked Sacha Baron Cohen’s Ali G the first time around, you’ll like this less; if you disliked it, you’ll dislike this more; if you suspected it was racist, you’ll be more emboldened to say so – especially as Baron Cohen has dreamed up a whole new character apparently to pre-empt and mock precisely that objection.'

Two stars was also the verdict of Empire's Helen O’Hara, who noted: 'He has a few gently funny scenes – a polite and remarkably chill estate agent is a welcome antidote to all the weirdness and bombast – but too much of the first and second act feel like they’re treading water and, importantly, not always punching up.' 

The same rating came from Tim Robey of The Telegraph, who mused: 'A couple of decades since Baron Cohen’s career-launching rude boy was last at large, he has contrived a comeback that delivers only scattered laughs and stray bursts of inspiration; the whole thing has the feel of a strained stunt.'

On the fence with a three star review was Time Out's Phil de Semlyen, who wrote: 'The results of this second Ali G movie are as scattergun as you might expect from Staines’s thinly sketched white-boy wannabe rapper.'

Three stars also came from The Financial Times' Danny Leigh, who said: 'Baron Cohen has long prized his own fearlessness. 

'Here, he seems weirdly jumpy – speaking up for humanist harmony in character, as if hopeful it will make a difference.'

The polarising reviews for Ali G: Who Iz I? follow calls for the mockumentary to be banned in UK cinemas, with a sinister campaign being launched amid claims the film and character are 'enforcing racist stereotypes', with the Daily Mail exposing how AI was used as a part of the campaign.

However, Baron Cohen has insisted that Ali G being 'outdated and problematic' is precisely why he believes it is time to reprise the role.

The British star has expressed concern about growing political polarisation and the normalisation of extreme views, arguing that the prejudices his characters expose have been amplified by social media and, increasingly, AI.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter about his decision to revive Ali G, he explained: 'Because I'm terrified of where our society is headed, and the way I can comment on that is through my comedy.

'I wanted to show the extremism on both sides of the political spectrum and the danger of virtuous violence. And obviously we wanted to make the funniest film that's ever been made.'

Baron Cohen also touched on the importance of making 'dangerous' films because of the rise of AI and the 'lies spread by social media'. 

The final scene in the upcoming film is a continuous shot filmed across 12 different locations, which includes gunfire, a medical procedure, drones and explosions.

He recalled being told by one of the 'great stuntmen' working on the film that he would be hospitalised due to the intense climate while filming.

But Baron Cohen insisted that it needed to be done, telling the publication: 'These really are the hardest movies to make, but I suppose I made it because I’m scared of this world of conspiracies and lies that are spread by social media and now by AI. 

'If we don’t have these shared facts, then democracies crumble and we can’t have a tolerant society. And to make people laugh is therapy.'

In a recent interview, he said the character is 'designed to expose prejudice'.

Baron Cohen wrote for Time magazine: 'The fact that Ali G is outdated and problematic is the very reason I resurrected him.

'All the prejudices my characters are designed to expose haven't just lingered –they've metastasised. 

'They're fuelled by the greatest propaganda machine in history – social media – and now by its monstrous child, AI.'

He claimed that in 2026 'ignorance reigns and truth is inverted'.

Criticism for the Amazon MGM film has been widespread.

A day after the trailer's release in August, NewsCord, a UK news comparison and media monitoring platform, started a campaign urging cinemas around the world to refuse to screen the film.

The campaign group have said they emailed 15 major chains globally with the request on behalf of those who register.

At the time, NewsCord had reached a total of 44,946, with an explanation for the campaign reading: 'On 11 January 2000 the Guardian reported the verdict of Black British comedians under the headline "Comics find Ali G is an alibi for racism"...

'Felix Dexter, who helped build The Real McCoy, said: "He allows the liberal middle classes to laugh at black street culture in a context where they can retain their sense of political correctness."

'Jeanette Winterson: "I don't know what the difference is between him and the Black and White Minstrels."'

Phil Clapp, head of the UK Cinema Association, told Variety in response to the campaign: 'Cinemas are there to engage and entertain the widest possible audience. They are not there to act as censors or arbiters of public taste.

'So where a film has been given a certificate by the BBFC [British Board of Film Classification], they will decide whether or not to play it solely with the likely response of their audience in mind.'

A defiant Baron Cohen also addressed the growing backlash, writing on X: 'In an age where a comedian's career can be ended by a single un-PC joke, I thought I'd play it safe and bring this guy back.'

Reports have suggested that the UK cinema chain Picturehouse had responded to the campaign and confirmed its outlets would not be screening the film.

However, Variety has since reported that Picturehouse's email was a standard customer response to any release query about a film that hasn't yet been booked by the company and didn't appear on its schedule, with no decision yet made.

Baron Cohen teased the return of the character with a surprise appearance at Wimbledon in July, where he donned his character's trademark look of bling jewellery paired with a tracksuit and sunglasses.

Last year, it was first reported he was 'bringing back his iconic comic creation, 27 years after the character first appeared on screens – where he was billed as the "voice of youth" on Channel 4's The 11 O'Clock Show in Autumn 1998'.

Subsequently, he became the title character of Da Ali G Show in the early 2000s, before starring as the titular character in 2002 film Ali G Indahouse.

In a 2007 interview with The Daily Telegraph, Baron Cohen announced that Ali G had been retired. However, he resurrected Ali G at the 2012 British Comedy Awards to accept his Outstanding Achievement Award.

He returned to TV as Ali G with Ali G Rezurection in 2014, which featured new footage of Ali G while showing old highlights of Da Ali G Show.