Roy Moore Wants $95M for Who Is America Stunt

Roy Moore has made good on his threat to sue Sacha Baron Cohen and Showtime over his appearance on Who Is America. The former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court and failed US Senate candidate is seeking $95 million, Variety reports, saying he was tricked into appearing on the show. "This false and fraudulent portrayal and mocking of Judge Moore as a sex offender … has severely harmed Judge Moore's reputation," the suit says. On the episode featuring Moore, Cohen pretended to be an Israeli anti-terrorism expert named Erran Morad, per the Washington Post. The topic of discussion: "prevention of pedophilia, presumably an uncomfortable subject for Moore," whose Senate campaign was dogged by allegations of past inappropriate behavior with teenage girls.

During the segment, Cohen waves a purported sex-offender detection wand over Moore that beeps repeatedly. In a July statement, Moore said that he had agreed to be on the show under the pretense that he would be receiving an award "for my strong support of Israel," AL.com reported at that time. He also threatened to sue Cohen and Showtime should the segment air, which it ultimately did. "I am involved in several court cases presently to defend my honor and character against vicious false political attacks by liberals like Cohen," Moore said. Moore did sign a release to be on the show, but, per the suit, his consent was obtained fraudulently. Showtime tells Variety that it hasn't been served and does not comment on pending litigation. (More Roy Moore stories.)