Bohemian Rhapsody has been a huge box office success and a winner at the Golden Globes, but the best thing about it is probably Rami Malek.

The Mr Robot actor plays Freddie Mercury to perfection, and he's even in line for an Oscar nomination this week.

Yet it all could have been so different.

20TH CENTURY FOX

The movie had been in development since all the way back in 2010, and the first actor linked to the role of the Queen frontman was Sacha Baron Cohen.



Still, the film's producer Graham King has now clarified that the Borat funnyman was never actually signed up for Bohemian Rhapsody.

Speaking at the Producers Guild Awards Nominees Breakfast (via Variety), King explained: "There was a lot of talk about different people playing Freddie Mercury and no-one was actually signed to play Freddie Mercury, no one was attached to play Freddie Mercury until Rami Malek."

He added: "It was just a lot of talk – there was a couple of actors that wanted to play that role."



The other actor King is no doubt referring to is Ben Whishaw, who left the project in 2015.

Last month, Queen guitarist Brian May also claimed that Bohemian Rhapsody with Sacha Baron Cohen would have been a "disaster" – after Cohen branded May "not a great movie producer" in 2016.

So, although Cohen and Whishaw were interested at one point, it looks like the role was destined for Rami Malek all along.

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