Stephen Colbert lampoons Rudy Giuliani’s Borat defence: ‘I would buy that, but I’ve watched the footage’

Giuliani has claimed the clip merely shows himself ‘tucking in my shirt’

Stephen Colbert has mocked Rudy Giuliani’s defence after the lawyer and former New York mayor was filmed in a compromising situation for the new Borat sequel.

As has been widely reported, the comedy Borat Subsequent Moviefilm features a lengthy scene in which Giuliani – Donald Trump’s personal attorney – is interviewed by Borat’s daughter, Tutar (played by Maria Bakalova).

Following the interview, the pair move to a hotel room at the suggestion of Tutar. There, hidden cameras capture Giuliani patting Bakalova on her lower back. After she removes his microphone, the 76-year-old is seen reclining on the bed when he appears to reach into his trousers.

The scene is cut short by Borat’s character who interrupts the interaction, stating: “She’s 15. She’s too old for you.” 

Since the film’s release, Giuliani has dismissed the clip as “a complete fabrication”. In a tweet, he wrote: “I was tucking in my shirt after taking off the recording equipment."

Sacha Baron Cohen as Borat, and Rudy Giuliani at a White House press conference in September (Amazon/Joshua Roberts/Getty Images)

Colbert addressed the controversy during Wednesday night’s  (21 October) opening monologue of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

After recounting the details of the scene in question, the talk show host went on to poke holes in Giuliani’s defence.

“I would buy that, but I’ve watched the footage,” he said. “Why would you go into a bedroom at the suggestion of a young woman to have cocktails… to take off a mic?”

Colbert added: “I take off a mic every night, never once have I reclined on a king-size bed and launched a fact-finding mission into my own groin.”

Earlier today (23 October), Baron Cohen – in character as Borat – rushed to the defence of Trump’s attorney in a new satirical video. The comedian claimed it was “an innocent encounter between a consenting man and my 15-year-old daughter”.

The Borat sequel, which arrives on Amazon Prime today (23 October), has been called “jaw-dropping” by The Independent in a four-star review.