The first full trailer of Disney’s live-action “Aladdin” dropped Tuesday, providing our most detailed look yet at the Guy Ritchie-directed remake.
The movie, which comes out May 24, had been beset by delays and some minor casting controversies.
Accusations of whitewashing flew about in 2017 when English actor Tom Hardy was mentioned as a possibility to play the main villain, Jafar, in a movie set in a fictional Middle Eastern kingdom.
Disney eventually cast Mena Massoud, an Egyptian-born Canadian actor, to play the titular character; Marwan Kenzari, a Dutch actor of Tunisian descent, to play Jafar; and Naomi Scott, of British and Indian descent, to play Princess Jasmine.
Will Smith plays Genie.
This new trailer opens with a scene reminiscent of the marketplace chase in the 1992 animated version. Here are some things we noticed.
• Will Smith is not blue the entire time: Some fans were quite upset by the sight of Will Smith as a very blue Genie when a shorter trailer aired during the Grammys telecast last month.
This longer look at the movie reveals that Smith won’t be blue the entire time. So, you know, balance.
• Not a lot of singing, huh?: Genie sings a snappy number, but the fan-favorite “A Whole New World” closes out the trailer and really goes heavy on the nostalgia factor.
But expect some new songs in the full movie, including a duet between Jasmine and Aladdin, as well as a Jasmine-centric song.
• Jafar is not creepy at all: In Disney’s original film from 1992, Jafar has a very sinister vibe. But when Kenzari was cast to play the Grand Vizier of Agrabah, many proclaimed that “hot Jafar” had arrived.
In these new scenes, Kenzari’s Jafar definitely doesn’t look evil. He kind of looks like my younger cousin (who’s a good kid!). Is it weird that I’m sort of rooting for him?
• Abu, however, is: Maybe a cartoon monkey will always be more delightful than any other version, but this CGI take on Aladdin’s sidekick Abu has less of a sassy-and-sweet vibe, and more of a “Wizard of Oz” flying monkey vibe. What I’m saying is, I think Abu should put the trumpet down and find the rest of his monkey family.
• Everyone is very clothed: Unlike the cartoon feature, Aladdin is wearing a shirt and DO NOT think I did not notice. Jasmine’s bare midriff is covered, too.
