The Oscar-nominated Bulgarian star of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm on the weirdness of shooting to fame during a pandemic
Bulgarian actor Maria Bakalova broke through last year as Sacha Baron Cohen’s co-star in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm. She has won more than 20 awards for the performance, including best supporting actress at the Critics’ Choice awards last month, and has been nominated for a Golden Globe, a Bafta and an Academy Award.
This year, we have all put more effort into getting dressed from the waist up for the benefit of a work Zoom call. Actor Maria Bakalova has been doing the same, only in her case she has been getting fully dressed and made-up for red-carpet events, while wearing slippers and pyjamas just off-screen. “The past 12 months have been really crazy,” she says over the phone now. “Probably it’s a little bit different from the normal way of becoming famous. It’s been… interesting!”
