Today In Rock: January 27th, 2019: Rami Malek Wins Playing Freddie Mercury
On this day… Rami Malek won Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role at the 25th Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards in L.A for his portrayal of the late Freddie Mercury in the Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
The project was announced in late 2010, with Sacha Baron Cohen set to play Mercury. After he left in mid-’13 following creative differences with producers, the production was stymie until Malek was cast in November ’16.
Critics and audiences praised the film’s musical sequences and Malek’s performance. It became a major box office success, grossing over $910-million worldwide on a production budget of about $50 million.
The film was also nominated for the Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture but lost to “Black Panther.”
###
