Media Moment: Ellen talk show
Queen-related: Marc Martel guests and performs on show
If this guy gets any more publicity from his viral audition for the Queen Extravaganza contest, he’s going to pre-empt Sacha Baron Cohen in the upcoming biopic on Freddie.
Ellen DeGeneres really played up the similarity between Marc and Freddie on her show recently, and the fact that he has musical ability and a voice to match has caught the attention of the world. His YouTube video audition went from relative obscurity to more than four million views in two weeks. A feat no doubt noticed by Ellen’s producers and Queen fans alike.
Ellen went one step farther in comparing Martel with Freddie by presenting a side-by-side photo comparison of the two. With a bit of dental enhancement and a proper hairstylist, he could make a convincing Freddie, in my opinion.
Sacha Baron Cohen, on the other hand, does have a chameleonic ability to mimic pretty much anyone, and his Freddie persona isn’t bad either. The problem is, how would Cohen pull off the vocal trickery needed in the upcoming Freddie film? And isn’t Cohen taller than not only Freddie but Brian? How’s that going to work? I think Martel is much closer in stature to Freddie and he can sing, and he looks like Freddie, and . . . need I go on?
Speaking of the Cohen/Freddie movie, I don’t see any indication of it on IMDb under neither Cohen’s bio or Peter Morgan’s, the writer. According to media reports (and even Brian’s own words), the production of the Freddie bio is currently filming and is set for release in late 2012. If so, why isn’t there a mention of it anywhere on IMDb? Something must be in pre-production if that’s the case.
Maybe the delays that can plague a major film production might just work in Martel’s favour. If the media keep comparing him to Freddie -- and especially if Brian and Roger pick him as the contest winner for their touring band -- he might just get slotted into the lead role of the movie if negotiations with Cohen are sidelined.
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