A new banner image for the upcoming live-action Aladdin remake spotlights the cast. The wildly popular Oscar-winning animated film has managed to maintain its pop-culture fame over the years, particularly as a result of the late Robin Williams and his magical performance as the voice of Genie. With Disney’s ongoing efforts to revive their most popular animated films as live-action features, Aladdin seemed ripe for the picking.
Co-written and directed by Guy Ritchie, the film is setting out to conquer box-offices and audiences alike as it retells the Aladdin story that first made its mark with the 1992 animated release. Though the 2019 version won't be a direct remake - a new script has been written by Ritchie and John August, all the well known characters like Jafar, Princess Jasmine, Genie, and Aladdin are returning, in addition to new characters like Prince Anders and Jasmine's confidant Dalia. With the initial hype over who would play Genie now settling down, Disney seems to be doing their best to get fans familiar with the film's primary cast, which is largely made up of newcomers.
Related: All The Live-Action Disney Remakes In Development
The most recent bit of cast publicity for Aladdin comes courtesy of Flickering Myth. A new banner for the film highlights the key players - from Jafar to the newly created Dalia. Aladdin (Mena Massoud) and his trusty lamp are seen front and center, in addition to Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott), Genie (Smith), Jafar (Marwan Kenzari) and Dalia (Nasim Pedrad). Check it out below:
Aladdin fans were initially troubled when the first glimpses of Smith as Genie weren't blue. Thankfully, Smith has since assured fans that Genie will indeed be blue, though we’ve yet to see any proof. In addition to these concerns, Aladdin has been targeted by one of the original film's writers Terry Rossio for Disney's lack of compensation to either himself or any of the other writers involved in scripting the original film. It's also seen its share of criticism and controversy for darkening the skin of "very fair-skinned" extras during production, rather than hiring racially appropriate background actors. Still, there remains the sense of growing momentum for Aladdin.
However, one other reason for concern over Aladdin’s prospects could lay with the film’s director Guy Ritchie. With his last two films - 2017’s King Arthur: Legend of the Sword and 2015’s The Man From U.N.C.L.E. - Ritchie failed to bring in favorable box-office numbers. In fact, aside from the Sherlock Holmes films, Ritchie has not been able to claim a hit for quite a while. That being said, this is a Disney production after all, and the Mouse House isn’t going to hand over the reins to such a beloved IP without doing their utmost to ensure that things are on the right track. So for now, fans will bide their time until the first full-length Aladdin trailer is released. After that, we’ll have a better idea of just how magical this live action re-telling will be.
More: Aladdin Teases Trailer Breakdown: 8 Hidden Secrets & Live-Action Reveals
Source: Flickering Myth
