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Sacha Baron Cohen Is Set to Play Proto-Superhero Mandrake the Magician

Cohen and Mandrake. Photo: Getty Images, King Comics

Sacha Baron Cohen is getting in on Hollywood’s comics craze. According to Variety, the actor is attached to star as the title character in Mandrake the Magician, an adaptation of Lee Falk’s old-school comic strip. Mandrake was first envisioned back in 1934, but it looks like the film version has been gestating almost as long, stuck in development for over a decade. Etan Cohen (Get Hard) will direct the project, which is reportedly still seeking a writer. In the comics, Mandrake is a stage magician and talented illusionist who uses his skills for the forces of good. Like the rest of us trying to impart some positive change on the world, Mandrake’s got an equally adept but evil, presumably mustache-twirling twin brother. So Sacha Baron Cohen will be playing a flourish-filled eccentric or two? Yeah, that sounds about right.

Sacha Baron Cohen Playing Mandrake the Magician