The producers of “Madoff: Made Off With America,” the unofficial story of the Bernard Madoff scandal, have cast Paul Cohen, a Jersey City, N.J., resident and newspaper advertising executive, for the lead role, according to the Forward.
Cohen, 64, learned in May that he landed the plum role, beating out 45 other Madoff hopefuls. And in doing so, he also landed his first-ever acting gig. The film’s director, writer and producer, Edmund Druilhet, told The Shmooze that he feels lucky to have found someone who so closely resembles the Ponzi schemer, who is referred to on the film’s Web site as “the Satan of Wall Street.”
“[Cohen] had the best lips,” said Druilhet, who also produced the film “Polanski Unauthorized.” “I have to say he stood out.”
Besides an uncanny resemblance to the swindler from Manhattan’s Upper East Side, Cohen and Madoff share other commonalities. Both are Jewish, have April birthdays and attended school in the Far Rockaway section of Queens. And they both know how to sell.
Something tells me this isn’t going to be an Oscar winner. I might just wait for the 27 Madoff biographies to come out.
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