13 Crazy Movie Pitches That Would Have Ruined 2015

9. Sacha Baron Cohen Stars In A Freddie Mercury Biopic

The Pitch: The long-planned Freddie Mercury biopic was set to have Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen taking on the iconic Queen singer, with shooting planned to set the movie up for a 2015 release date, probably primed for awards season. What Happened?: Queen guitarist Brian May admitted, "In the end we felt that his presence in the movie would be very distracting", though added that the band and Cohen parted on good terms. Ben Whishaw has since been cast in the part, though the actor recently said that due to script issues, it "seems to be on the back-burner". Even a 2016 release is looking unlikely at this point. It's just as well that Cohen was ditched from the role, because May is absolutely right: audiences would go in expecting a comic look at the singer, and no matter how brilliant Cohen could've been in the role, his presence would probably have tainted the overall product, especially if it was intended as wholly serious. Whishaw is a much better fit for disappearing into the role, even if he frankly looks too slim and wiry for the part.