# Brüno
**Brüno** is a 2009 mockumentary comedy film directed by [Larry Charles](https://www.edgepedia.org/larry-charles) and written by and starring [Sacha Baron Cohen](https://www.edgepedia.org/sacha-baron-cohen) as a flamboyant gay Austrian fashion journalist who travels to the United States in pursuit of celebrity. It was produced by [Universal Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-pictures) with Everyman Pictures and Four by Two Films, and it followed Baron Cohen's 2006 film *Borat* in using a false-premise character to provoke unscripted reactions from real people.[1](https://www.bfi.org.uk/film/5ed22887-78aa-588c-bf47-8f2e58c7d21d/bruno) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bruno)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | Wide theatrical release in the United States on July 10, 2009; earliest release July 8, 2009 (Belgium)[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0889583/) |
| Director and writers | Directed by Larry Charles; written by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Mazer, and Jeff Schaffer[1](https://www.bfi.org.uk/film/5ed22887-78aa-588c-bf47-8f2e58c7d21d/bruno) |
| Cast | Sacha Baron Cohen as Brüno, Gustaf Hammarsten as Lutz, Clifford Bañagale as Diesel[1](https://www.bfi.org.uk/film/5ed22887-78aa-588c-bf47-8f2e58c7d21d/bruno) • [4](https://www.refused-classification.com/censorship/film-1/american-comedy-01/) |
| Box office | $60,054,530 domestic and $78,751,301 international, for a worldwide total of $138,805,831[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0889583/) |
| US rating | R for pervasive strong and crude sexual content, graphic nudity, and language[5](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bruno) |
| UK ratings | Passed 18 uncut (82m 32s) and 15 in a distributor-cut "snipped" version (79m 6s)[6](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bruno-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc00mjawodi) |
| Character origin | The Brüno character first appeared in short inserts in 1998 on Paramount Comedy Channel in Britain[7](https://forward.com/culture/film-tv/335698/sacha-baron-cohens-long-journey-from-anatevka-to-grimsby/) |
## Spoilers
### Premise and production
The title character hosts a fictional Austrian television fashion show, *Funkyzeit mit Brüno*, and is fired after hijacking a runway presentation with a Velcro jumpsuit. He then goes to the United States intending to become "the most famous Austrian since Hitler".[8](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/17/bruno-review-sacha-baron-cohen) In his quest for fame he moves through a series of real-world encounters, attempting to seduce the Republican congressman [Ron Paul](https://www.edgepedia.org/ron-paul), consulting a gayness-curing evangelist, parading through an ultra-orthodox area of Jerusalem in Hasidic-inspired hotpants, persuading stage mothers to dress their children as Nazis, and adopting an African baby.[8](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/17/bruno-review-sacha-baron-cohen) • [9](https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/satire-of-homophobia-in-bruno-may-backfire-3292954.php) His foil is Lutz, a bumbling Austrian assistant played by the Swedish actor Gustaf Hammarsten, who is in love with him.[10](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jul/12/bruno-film-review-philip-french)
Universal Pictures released production notes in June 2009 that described 19 weeks of filming, clashes with authorities, police pursuits, various disguises, and a dangerous mob at the film's concluding scene at a mixed martial arts event. The crew's working mantra, learned on *Borat*, was "Know and obey the law, and always have an escape plan."[11](https://www.latimes.com/archives/blogs/the-big-picture/story/2009-06-29/bruno-and-universal-pull-back-the-curtain) One scene, in which Brüno has [La Toya Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/la-toya-jackson) eat sushi off a naked Mexican gardener, was cut after the death of her brother [Michael Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-jackson) in June 2009.[8](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/17/bruno-review-sacha-baron-cohen) The film ends with a wrestling-match sequence in which Brüno, appearing as a new character called Straight Dave, makes out with a member of the audience.[12](https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/2024240314/2009-07-16/ed-1/seq-23.pdf)
## Censorship and ratings
**United Kingdom.** The film came before the [British Board of Film Classification](https://www.edgepedia.org/british-board-of-film-classification) in an unfinished version, and the BBFC advised that it was likely to receive an 18 but that the requested 15 could be achieved by changes to three scenes: the majority of a montage of exaggerated sexual activity between Brüno and his boyfriend, Brüno comically miming fellatio and anilingus while pretending to have oral sex with a deceased person contacted through a medium, and sex between couples at a swingers' party with aggressive sexual dialogue. An uncut version was classified 18 on June 17, 2009, and the cut "snipped" version, running 79 minutes 6 seconds, was classified 15 on July 14, 2009 and distributed in cinemas.[6](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bruno-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc00mjawodi) The distributor, Universal, publicly protested the 18 certificate, calling it "absurd" and noting that the film was rated 16 in Ireland, 12 in the Netherlands, and R in the United States; Baron Cohen said the requested cuts would have removed some of the funniest scenes and that the film was submitted as an 18 after a 15 was sought.[13](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/bruno-too-hot-to-handle-for-film-censors-1708984.html) Time Out's review of the 15-rated cut listed the removed scenes and noted the new edit was less sexually explicit, with Brüno's bedroom antics left more to the imagination.[14](https://www.timeout.com/movies/bruno-snipped-1)
**Australia.** The Classification Board classified the original version R 18+ with consumer advice of "Sexual activity and nudity", judging the impact of the obscured sexual activity to be high. A modified version was classified MA 15+ with advice of "Strong sex scenes and nudity, crude humour and coarse language", in which sexual activity was entirely obscured. The censored MA 15+ version opened theatrically on July 8, 2009, and the board later recorded 33 complaints about the classification, many from complainants suggesting it should have been R 18+. An uncut R 18+ edition was later released on Blu-ray and DVD, marketed as "the version you couldn't see in Australian cinemas".[4](https://www.refused-classification.com/censorship/film-1/american-comedy-01/)
**Other territories.** The film was banned in Malaysia and Ukraine and was cut to avoid a ban in the Philippines.[15](https://www.melonfarmers.co.uk/hitsb_br.htm) In Spain it was rated not recommended for viewers under 18 and grossed 1,763,267.36 euros from 293,519 admissions.[16](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=81509)
## Box office and the "Brüno effect"
The film opened at number one in the United States on Friday, July 10, 2009, taking in over $18.8 million that day, and analysts projected an opening weekend above $50 million. By Saturday, however, receipts fell an unusually sharp 38 percent, and several prominent journalists speculated that negative comments on Twitter may have amplified negative word-of-mouth and caused the fall-off, a episode that became known as the "Brüno effect".[17](https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5628071) The film ultimately opened domestically at $30,619,130 and finished with $60,054,530 in the United States and $138,805,831 worldwide.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0889583/) In the United Kingdom it grossed £15.8 million, making it the top-grossing 18-classified film of 2009, ahead of *Inglourious Basterds* at £10.9 million.[18](https://catalogus.boekman.nl/pub/P11-0550.pdf)
## Critical reception and the homophobia debate
Critics were divided over whether the film satirizes homophobia or perpetuates it. The Guardian's London premiere review called Baron Cohen a politically astute agent who devised a way to confront and expose serious social issues, while asking directly whether he was lampooning homophobia or perpetuating it.[8](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/17/bruno-review-sacha-baron-cohen) The gay rights campaigner [Peter Tatchell](https://www.edgepedia.org/peter-tatchell) argued the film would "both incite homophobia and make bigots squirm", saying it scores laughs by exposing dim-witted homophobes while its persona also embodies lazy, crude gay stereotypes.[19](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/peter-tatchell-bruno-will-both-incite-homophobia-and-make-bigots-squirm-1727873.html) Universal Pictures told leaders of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation at a screening that the film was meant as a satire of homophobia, and some advocates worried that children could be taunted with the character's name on playgrounds.[9](https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/satire-of-homophobia-in-bruno-may-backfire-3292954.php) Writing in The Guardian, the novelist Philip Hensher argued that the real satirical target was "the absurd posturing of a heterosexuality in terrible crisis", and that Baron Cohen was not a bigot but a remarkably brave performer.[20](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/27/sacha-baron-cohen-bruno-camp)
Reviewers also compared the film with its predecessor. Roger Ebert, the [Chicago Sun-Times](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-sun-times) critic and 1975 [Pulitzer Prize](https://www.edgepedia.org/pulitzer-prize) winner, gave the film a positive review and noted that its R rating was "very, very hard".[21](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/bruno-2009) On the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the critics consensus describes it as "crude and offensive, but with ample cultural insights and gut-busting laughs".[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bruno) Metacritic recorded reviews ranging from J. Hoberman's Village Voice observation that a retold joke loses explosive force, to TV Guide Magazine's 88 score calling it "satire at its most confrontational and incisive".[22](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bruno/critic-reviews/?dist=neutral) Scholarly work has placed the film in Baron Cohen's broader comic method: Joshua Louis Moss, a visiting assistant professor of film and media at the [University of California, Santa Barbara](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-california-santa-barbara), groups Brüno with Ali G, Borat, and Admiral General Shabazz Aladeen as characters built on intentionally unreliable inter-ethnic word substitutions, a technique he calls "transcomedy".[23](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1367877915595476)
## References
1. [Brüno (2009), British Film Institute](https://www.bfi.org.uk/film/5ed22887-78aa-588c-bf47-8f2e58c7d21d/bruno)
2. [Brüno, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bruno)
3. [Brüno (2009), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0889583/)
4. [Brüno, Refused-Classification.com (Australian censorship record)](https://www.refused-classification.com/censorship/film-1/american-comedy-01/)
5. [Bruno, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/bruno)
6. [Bruno, British Board of Film Classification](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/bruno-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc00mjawodi)
7. [Sacha Baron Cohen's Long Journey From Anatevka to 'Grimsby', The Forward](https://forward.com/culture/film-tv/335698/sacha-baron-cohens-long-journey-from-anatevka-to-grimsby/)
8. [Brüno review: Sacha Baron Cohen's film premieres in London, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/17/bruno-review-sacha-baron-cohen)
9. [Satire of homophobia in 'Brüno' may backfire, San Francisco Chronicle (SFGate)](https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/satire-of-homophobia-in-bruno-may-backfire-3292954.php)
10. [Bruno, The Guardian (Philip French review)](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jul/12/bruno-film-review-philip-french)
11. ['Bruno' and Universal pull back the curtain, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/archives/blogs/the-big-picture/story/2009-06-29/bruno-and-universal-pull-back-the-curtain)
12. [Movies by Jason Blair, The Register-Guard (University of Oregon digital newspapers)](https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/2024240314/2009-07-16/ed-1/seq-23.pdf)
13. ['Brüno' too hot to handle for film censors, The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/bruno-too-hot-to-handle-for-film-censors-1708984.html)
14. [Brüno: Snipped, Time Out](https://www.timeout.com/movies/bruno-snipped-1)
15. [Film Cuts B: Br–Bz, Melon Farmers](https://www.melonfarmers.co.uk/hitsb_br.htm)
16. [Datos de Película ICAA, Catálogo de Películas (Spain)](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/es-es/Peliculas/Detalle?Pelicula=81509)
17. [Can Tweets Kill a Movie? An Empirical Evaluation of the 'Brüno Effect', SSRN](https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5628071)
18. [Statistical Yearbook 2010, UK Film Council](https://catalogus.boekman.nl/pub/P11-0550.pdf)
19. [Peter Tatchell: 'Brüno will both incite homophobia and make bigots squirm', The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/peter-tatchell-bruno-will-both-incite-homophobia-and-make-bigots-squirm-1727873.html)
20. [Bruno shoots, and scores, The Guardian (Philip Hensher)](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jun/27/sacha-baron-cohen-bruno-camp)
21. [Brüno Review, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/bruno-2009)
22. [Bruno critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/bruno/critic-reviews/?dist=neutral)
23. [Defining transcomedy: Humor, tricksterism, and postcolonial affect from Gerald Vizenor to Sacha Baron Cohen, International Journal of Cultural Studies](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1367877915595476)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 2009 to 2010 › Released in 2009*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license