Disney and filmmaker Guy Ritchie may have had trouble finding their stars for Aladdinfollowing a worldwide search, but news is that after meeting with 2,000 actors, looking for unknowns of Middle Eastern or Indian descent to play Aladdin and Jasmine, has finally ended.
Aladdin has cast Mena Massoud as the titular Aladdin and Power Rangers‘ Naomi Scott as his love interest and the princess of Agrabah, Jasmine.
Producer Dan Linpreviously said “we’re not here to make Prince of Persia,” to put worries about whitewashing back when Tom Hardy (Dark Knight Rises, Mad Max: Fury Road, Dunkirk) was rumored to be linked to the project for the role of Jafar.
Massoud is of Egyptian descent, while Scott is half-British, half Gujarati Indian. Their casting is in line with Disney’s search for stars reflective of the characters’ descent, but the studio may still take some heat if Scott looks racially ambiguous, check out her photo from Power Rangers below.
Ritchie confirmed at D23 that Will Smith is set to star as the Genie, whose role was originated by the late Robin Williams. Smith’s boisterous acting style makes him perfect for the role.
Massoud is a Canadian actor who has recently appeared in the Jack Ryan television series, currently in production for Amazon, as well as TV series like Open Heart and Saving Hope. Scott is a bit of a bigger name, having starred in the big budget movie reboot of Power Rangers as Kimberly, the Pink Ranger.
Ritchie also confirmed that the adaptation will take inspiration from both the animated classic and the original folk tale as it appeared in 1,001 Arabian Nights.
The script is written by John August, who wrote Goand directed The Nines.
Ritchie is coming off of two unfortunate box-office misfires with his new takes on The Man from U.N.L.E. and King Arthur, but both were considered good by many critics.
Brandon Jones - Writer and Co-Founder of The Global Dispatch, Brandon has been covering news, offering commentary for years, beginning professionally in 2003 on Crazed Fanboy before expanding into other blogs and sites.
Appearing on several radio shows, Brandon has hosted Dispatch Radio, written his first novel (The Rise of the Templar) and completed the three years Global University program in Ministerial Studies to be a pastor.
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[…] Disney already battled the politically correct road to cast the leads: Will Smith, who plays the Genie, British-Indian actress Naomi Scott as Jasmine and Egyptian-born Canadian Mena Massoud in the title role. […]
Producer Dan Lin previously said “we’re not here to make Prince of Persia,” to put worries about whitewashing back when Tom Hardy (Dark Knight Rises, Mad Max: Fury Road, Dunkirk) was rumored to be linked to the project for the role of Jafar.
[…] Disney already battled the politically correct road to cast the leads: Will Smith, who plays the Genie, British-Indian actress Naomi Scott as Jasmine and Egyptian-born Canadian Mena Massoud in the title role. […]