Variety reports that Ben Kingsley has joined Sacha Baron Cohen’s The Dictator, while The League’s Jason Mantzoukas is in talks for Cohen’s sidekick and likely to sign on. Set to be released May 11, 2012, Baron Cohen’s political satire follows the adventures of a disposed dictator as he attempts to protect his country from democracy. The film is based on the novel Zabibah and the King, typically attributed to Saddam Hussein and containing slightly fewer talking-penis gags than the film version. Meanwhile, Anna Faris, Kristen Wiig and Gillian Jacos are up for the role of the dictator’s love interest. Given the awkward sex scenes in Bridesmaids, and the borderline grotesque boning in MacGruber, I’m hoping Wiig will sign on for what I can only imagine will be some profoundly hirsute love-making.
