Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen has hit back at Donald Trump after the US president called him a “creep” and a “phoney guy”.
Baron Cohen told Mr Trump “I don’t find you funny either” in a tweet on Saturday before suggesting he is a “racist buffoon”.
The pair have traded insults after the British comedian targeted the president’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani in a prank for his new film.
Baron Cohen, who co-wrote and stars in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, tweeted on Saturday: “Donald – I appreciate the free publicity for Borat! I admit, I don’t find you funny either. But yet the whole world laughs at you.
“I’m always looking for people to play racist buffoons, and you’ll need a job after Jan 20. Let’s talk!”
When asked about the scene featuring Mr Giuliani, Mr Trump said he didn’t know what had happened.
However, he did say of Baron Cohen: “You know, years ago, he tried to scam me.
“And I was the only one that said: ‘No way. This guy is a phoney guy.’ I don’t find him funny. To me, he’s a creep.”
Mr Trump was briefly interviewed on Baron Cohen’s Da Ali G Show in 2003, but walked away from the cameras after just a minute.
A scene in Baron Cohen’s new film shows Mr Giuliani in what appears to be a compromising position in a hotel room with a young woman acting as a journalist.
Mr Giuliani has insisted the footage is “a complete fabrication” – and says his hand was only tucking his shirt in.
In the film, which is the sequel to the 2006 Borat original, Mr Giuliani is shown on a bed with his hand down his trousers after the young woman helps him remove recording equipment.
He tweeted to say he was not at any time “inappropriate” in the scene, accusing Baron Cohen of being a “stone-cold liar”.
Donald Trump is not a fan of British comic Sacha Baron Cohen. Pic: Borat 2/Amazon Prime Video
Mr Giuliani told his 841,000 followers he has “called the police” over the matter.
Another scene in the movie shows the actress – who plays Borat’s “15-year-old” daughter – coming within feet of Mr Trump and shaking hands with his son Donald Jr.
In a clip shared on Borat’s official Twitter account, Bulgarian actress Maria Bakalova, who plays Tutar, appears to be in the same room as the president at what we’re told is The White House.
Just what 2020 needs – a giant, semi-naked Borat inflatable
A voiceover says “no need for security checks or COVID test, they boring”.
The White House has not commented on the apparent security breach.
Earlier this week, a large inflatable Borat was floated down the Thames to publicise the movie.
The critical response to Borat 2, which follows the fictional Kazakh journalist on a trip to the US, has been largely positive.