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12 Jul, 2017

Guy Ritchie's live action remake for Aladdin has had its fair share of trouble and it's still not over.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Disney is having problems with casting for the film. While Will Smith is in talks to play the Genie, the problem lies with finding suitable talented actors for the main leads.

The studio had its eyes on Dev Patel and Riz Ahmed for Aladdin, while there are speculations of having Power Rangers actor Naomi Scott on board for Jasmine. Previously in March, a global casting call was announced, and around 2000 actors have read for the parts of the lead. Casting director Tess Joseph has also been touring India, scouting for talent.

Yet for some odd reason, Disney is still struggling to find 20-year-olds who can act, sing and dance... in India... To that we say, "Whaaaa?"

Or as comedian Kumail Nanjiani said;

While we don't know if Kumail is the right guy for the job, he raises an interesting point. Does Disney not know about Lollywood or Bollywood? Do they not know that singing and dancing comes with the South Asian package? Can they not see the plethora of options available to them? Because we can!

Guy Ritchie hopes to start production for Aladdin by August. We hope they find someone by then because it's already been long enough!

Comments

ga Jul 12, 2017 10:38pm
why bring a South Asian guy to play an Arab guy. I am sure there are Arab actors good enough to play Alladin.
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Aamtaur Jul 12, 2017 11:08pm
Not sure why Kumail feels he should be higher on the list than folks who have been doing this for a much longer time...
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Saqib Jul 13, 2017 12:20am
Alladin is a Persian middle eastern fable ..so went can't they cast middle eastern actors.
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Imran Jul 13, 2017 01:13am
Kumail doesn't fit in role of Alladin.
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Khalid44 Jul 13, 2017 03:34am
Yes: your said it best. Takes one to know thyself and accurately as well. I will give you that.
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A true fact Jul 13, 2017 04:49am
Well sure Bollywood and lolly wood have alottA actors.. Who would well fit the character looks wise.. But honestly the talent level of this region is way below par that guy Ritchie is used to.. We don't just need an apu like accented character here.. Bolly and lolly think they have tons of talents but out there well the bar is set quite high.. From Daniel Day Lewis to all there is no comparison and it's a long way for them to come Up to..
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isha Jul 13, 2017 06:08am
someone forward them detailts of both fawad and ali
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kerala Jul 13, 2017 08:52am
Where did Lolly wood popped up in the discussions? It's India we are looking into not Pakistan.
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ather_khan Jul 13, 2017 09:35am
why it has to be an indian or pakistani or arab character to play these roles. there are talented white actors who can pull this off more genuinely. though the story is about east, but disney's characters are all based on western cultures and thoughts. so a white character is more preferable than people from east.
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Aamer Jul 13, 2017 11:53am
Aladdin is based on Arab. So Guy Ritchie should look for Arab actors from Morroco, UAE, Lebanon and Tunasia not asians.
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Chikki Jul 13, 2017 04:52pm
Aren't Pakistanis arabs?
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ONEDIFFERENT Jul 17, 2017 10:38am
@kerala hello mr.karala last night they decided to cast bahubali for the role of jasmine.
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