Heating up the promotional campaign for ‘The Dictator,’ Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest comedy transformation as the deposed ruler of the Republic of Wadiya, Universal Pictures has launched this pretty fantastic official website for the mock-Nation with RepublicOfWadiya.com. Head on over to the site to learn more about the Republic’s leader, Shabazz Aladeen (Baron Cohen), alongside new images, the Republic’s calendar, weather forecast, a hilarious news feed, and links to the Republic’s Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages. Below is a taster of what to expect.

“Birth: Supreme Leader Shabazz Aladeen gave a great gift to the world when he decided to be born. He was seventh son of the glorious Wadiyan President-For-Life Omar Aladeen. His mother was an Air France stewardess who tragically died of an oxygen underdose shortly after Aladeen’s birth in 1982 – this fact means he is now 30 years old. Any photos you may have seen of Aladeen as a child in the mid-70s, including a great one of him at the premiere of Saturday Night Fever, were doctored by the corrupt Zionist Western media.”

Written by Sacha Baron Cohen and directed by Larry Charles (Borat, Bruno), the film is set for a May 11th release in the US, and May 18th release in the UK. The likes of Anna Faris, J.B. Smoove, Jason Mantzoukas, Megan Fox, John C. Reilly, and Ben Kingsley co-star. The Dictator’ tells the heroic story of a dictator who risked his life to ensure that democracy would never come to the country he so lovingly oppressed. It is inspired by the best selling novel “Zabibah and The King” by Saddam Hussein.

Throughout his extraordinary career, Academy Award-winning director Martin Scorsese has brought his unique vision and dazzling gifts to life in a series of unforgettable films. This holiday season the legendary storyteller invites you to join him on a thrilling journey to a magical world with his first-ever 3D film, based on Brian Selznick’s award-winning, imaginative New York Times best-seller, “The Invention of Hugo Cabret.” ‘Hugo’ is the astonishing adventure of a wily and resourceful boy whose quest to unlock a secret left to him by his father will transform Hugo and all those around him, and reveal a safe and loving place he can call home. ‘Hugo’ stars Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. This film is out now in the US, and is set for release December 2nd in the UK.

Working with Martin Scorsese before, and just looking at how he’s contributed to cinema, what is it like getting that call from him asking you to be in his film?

Ben Kingsley: Martin Scorsese phoned me up, and I couldn’t say no (laughs). Whenever Marty calls you just say yes, because he’s the best. He’s loving, he’s thorough, he adores detail, and he also was embarking on an adventure himself – he hadn’t worked in 3D before. And to be with a genius who’s trying something new, that is just very very exciting. I knew from ‘Shutter Island’ how caring he is as a director, and how he will get the very best out of you because you love him so much as a director, you want to please him and surprise him. Every time he prints a take that he’s happy with, and puts it in the movie, it’s a great thrill because to bring a laugh or smile to Marty’s face is a real treat.

What was it like working in these sets, which were built to scale?

Ben Kingsley: It’s a huge gift to us. It constantly fed us. Between takes I used to wander around the station, and the detail was extraordinary. You never left that world. It was so embracing and so sustaining, a huge gift to the actors, all to scale, not a lot of CGI really, compared to what there might have been, very little. The set was very realistic. It was incredibly detailed, in the kitchen of my apartment, in-between takes I’d wonder in – because I rather like kitchens, I like to cook – I opened a cupboard and it was full of food; vegetables, dried goods, tinned goods, everything was there. The audience won’t see it, but I do, so because the breaks are a little bit longer with 3D, actors could wonder around the set. Everywhere you looked, it was totally real. So that really fed us into Paris 1930’s. It fed us into that magic world we were creating.

I read you stayed in character when the cameras weren’t rolling?

Ben Kingsley: I tended to stay in character because so many of many of my major scenes were with Asa, and in order to feed that relationship because “action” and “cut” can be shockingly short, that space you have to establish a deep rapport with your fellow actors. Also, my shape was so defined as older George it was very difficult for me to snap back into Ben because, I mean, it just didn’t happen. I was stuck with George. I thought I should exploit that and allow Asa and Chloe as younger actors to discover George even when the cameras weren’t rolling. And sometimes for lines off, Marty encouraged me to be really ruthless. Because I have to push Asa away, I have to reject him really vigorously. Go away. And the more vigorous I am against Asa’s entering my life, the more heroic his entrance is. So it really helps a lot to, in a sense, to stay in character. It doesn’t always work. I don’t always do that, but particularly when I’m working with much, much younger actors I think it really feeds the process. I was pretty grumpy most of the time (laughs).

This is such a magical film. It‘s also a very brave film….

Ben Kingsley: I think the core value of its magic is its fearlessness in putting wounded characters on the screen. That’s a very brave move, it’s not very fashionable, it’s not sugar coated. A wounded man who is totally retired from his life, almost committed suicide of the spirit, orphan, orphan, a girl who lost her brother in the Battle of the Somme in 1914, a dreadful way to lose a brother, and a chap who lost his leg. Wounded, wounded, wounded, wounded, wounded. And I think that’s an incredibly bold move to make in the present context. That’s where the magic comes from.

‘Hugo’ tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, ‘The Invention of Hugo Cabret,’ this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D. ‘Hugo’ stars Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. This film is out now in the US, and is set for release December 2nd in the UK.

How was it working with Martin Scorsese, especially since this movie is such a celebration of cinema?

Chloe Moretz: When I read the script, I thought that this is kind of Martin’s homage to filmmaking, it’s kind of his thanks to the people who started it. He tells so many stories, and he’s been around for so long that he’s known so many people….it’s kind of baffling (laughs), how much he does know about this film business. Not only did I grow as an actor on this film with Scorsese, I grew in my knowledge of film history, which I’ve always been a history buff. Of course, I walked on the set knowing a little bit about it thinking, “Oh, I can have a conversation with him,” and then you get into the conversation and he’s like, “Oh! Dah-dah-dah-dah,” and you’re like, “Okay, I’m not prepared for this.” (Laughs) But yeah, it was a magical experience working with him, and a magical movie with all these awesome, amazing actors and I really wouldn’t give anything in the world to take it back.

Isabelle must have been a fun character to play, she leaps at the chance of adventure?

Chloe Moretz: Isabelle is a really fun character because she’s a very free girl. Even though she is in lock down per se with Papa George, she can’t go and see movies or anything. Yet I’d still say she’s pretty free, she reads a lot of books, and she has a gigantic imagination. She’s actually a lot like Hugo in a way because she doesn’t have a mum or a dad, but she has her godfather and her godmother, which is a kind of special relationship between her and Ben and her and Helen McCrory. She was very fun to play.

I really enjoyed Hugo and Isabelle’s friendship, what was that like to portray, and how was working with Asa Butterfield?

Chloe Moretz: I like saying Asa is like my little brother, because I’m a month older than him (laughs). But he is like my brother, I have like four brothers. He’s such a sweet guy, we had so much on-set jokes. We work really well together, and we had a lot of fun working together. The relationship between Hugo and Isabelle was interesting because they both needed each other for some reason. They both had something that they didn’t have in parents, and they both wanted to be loved and they needed love. I think Hugo needed someone to talk to, and someone to have close to him. And I needed someone to have an adventure with.

Once you get into what they’re finding out, you’re going on the story with them, especially because it’s in 3D, you feel like you’re in this clock with them. I love the mystery. There’s never a moment where it’s calm, cool or collected. They’re always running from the Station Inspector, running from Papa George, they’re always trying to figure out different stuff because not only are Hugo and Isabelle adventurers, but they’re kids too. There’s something about being a kid, there’s always something you’re always wanting to find out, you’re poking or you’re prodding, you wanna find out as much as you can. I think that’s definitely them….always poking and prodding at people (laughs).

I heard during the audition for ‘Hugo’ you fooled Martin Scorsese into thinking you were British.

Chloe Moretz: When Marty flew Asa and I to New York to chemistry read for the role, we walked into this screening room, which was absolutely terrifying, but we walked into this screening room and I was fully British from meeting Marty to the end of the audition, then I went back to my American accent. The whole time he totally thought I was a British actress because he had never seen any of my other movies. He had never seen ‘Kick Ass’ or anything like that. So by the time that I left, (in an American accent) “Okay, thanks Marty. See you.” He was like, “Whoa!” He was like, “So you’re American?” I was like, “I am,” and he was like, “You fooled me kid.” I was like, “I did fool you.” But it worked (laughs). I guess I just tried to mimic Asa’s type accent, so that way we were on the same kind of playing field.

Entertainment Films has released this new TV spot for Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an outstanding ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd in the US, and December 2nd in the UK.

‘Hugo’ tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.

Entertainment Films has released this new UK trailer for Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an outstanding ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd in the US and December 2nd in the UK.

‘Hugo’ tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.

Moviefone has released this new poster for Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an outstanding ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd, 2011.

‘Hugo’ tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.

Paramount Pictures has released this new French poster for Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an outstanding ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd, 2011. Source: Impawards.

‘Hugo’ tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.

Paramount Pictures has released this new featurette for Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an outstanding ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd, 2011.

‘Hugo’ tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.

Paramount Pictures have liberated this new image of Chloe Moretz and Asa Butterfield in Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an outstanding ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Butterfield,  Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd, 2011.

Hugo tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.

Paramount Pictures (via EW’s Fall Preview) have unveiled this new still from Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated 3D adventure film ‘Hugo.’ The film features an all-star ensemble cast in Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Asa Butterfield, Chloe Moretz, Jude Law, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Helen McCrory, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Emily Mortimer and Michael Stuhlbarg. There’s a simple equation that applies to this film: Martin Scorsese + Directing =  ticket automatically bought. ‘Hugo’ is set for release November 23rd, 2011.

Hugo tells the story of an orphan boy living a secret life in the walls of a Paris train station. With the help of an eccentric girl, he searches for the answer to a mystery linking the father he recently lost, the ill-tempered toy shop owner living below him and a heart shaped lock, seemingly without a key. Based on Brian Selznick’s award winning and imaginative New York Times bestseller, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, this magical tale is Academy Award(R)-winner Martin Scorsese’s first film shot in 3D.