A winner has been declared in the showdown between comedian Sacha Baron Cohen and former judge and failed Senate candidate Roy Moore, at least for now.
On Thursday, Baron Cohen defeated a $95m defamation lawsuit brought by Moore, who said he was tricked into a television appearance that lampooned sexual misconduct accusations against him.
The second US circuit court of appeals in Manhattan, upholding a lower court’s ruling in favor of Baron Cohen, said Moore signed a disclosure agreement that prohibited any legal claims over the appearance.
The three judges also found it was “clearly comedy” when Baron Cohen demonstrated a so-called pedophile detector that beeped when it got near Moore, and no viewer would think the comedian was making factual allegations against Moore.
Accusations of sexual misconduct swirled around Moore when he stood as a Republican to represent Alabama in the US Senate in 2017, a race he lost to the Democrat Doug Jones despite the state being among the most conservative in the country.
The lawsuit centered on Moore’s appearance on Who is America?, a show created by the comedian.
Moore, a Republican known for his hardline stances opposing same-sex marriage and supporting the public display of Ten Commandments, had been told he was receiving an award for supporting Israel. But in the segment, Baron Cohen appeared as a faux counter-terrorism instructor, “Col Erran Morad”, discussing bogus military technology, including the supposed pedophile detector. The fake device beeped repeatedly as it got near Moore, who sat stone-faced. Roy has been accused of pursuing sexual and romantic relationships with teens when he was a man in his 30s, allegations he denies.
“Baron Cohen may have implied (despite his in character disclaimers of any belief that Judge Moore was a pedophile) that he believed Judge Moore’s accusers, but he did not imply the existence of any independent factual basis for that belief besides the obviously farcical pedophile detecting ‘device,’ which no reasonable person could believe to be an actual, functioning piece of technology,” the court wrote in the unsigned summary order.
Moore and his wife, Kayla, sued, arguing that the segment defamed Moore and caused them emotional distress. The couple claimed the waiver Moore signed was unenforceable because it was obtained under a false representation. The appellate court noted that it was indeed a ruse that got Moore to appear on the show but Moore signed a binding release waiving all legal claims.
Baron Cohen has for years lured unwitting politicians into awkward interviews. He has faced past lawsuits over similar pranks, but those were also tossed out because the individuals had signed releases.
Moore and his wife indicated they will appeal.
“For far too long the American people have been subjected to the antics of Sasha Baron Cohen. His pusillanimous and fraudulent conduct must be stopped. We will appeal,” the couple said in a statement texted to the Associated Press.
The Associated Press contributed reporting