Disney and director Guy Ritchie have apparently had a few issues finding the right actor for the lead role in their planned live-action take on Aladdin. It’s taken them months, but they’ve now reached a decision.
At the House Of Mouse’s D23 expo, they’ve revealed that relative newcomer Mena Massoud will take the title role, with Power Rangers’ Naomi Scott as Jasmine. They join the now confirmed Will Smith as the genie.
Apparently over 2,000 actors auditioned for the role of Aladdin, with Disney looking at the likes of Dev Patel and Riz Ahmed, before deciding that Massoud was their man. The young star has previously been seen in the likes of TV’s Saving Hope, and he’s also got a role in the upcoming Jack Ryan television series.
Disney is hoping to start shooting Aladdin next month in the UK, but there’s still got plenty of work to do before then. That’s not least that they need to find someone to play the villain, Jafar, as well as various other roles. (H/T THR)
Recently Will Smith turned down the opportunity to take a major role in Tim Burton’s live-action take on Dumbo. However, it turns out that might have been because he had a different Disney role in mind, as he’s in talks to voice the Genie in the studio’s planned live-action version of Aladdin, according to 
Disney is soon going to run out of classic animated movies to turn live action, as after the likes of Maleficent, Cinderella and The Jungle Book, we’ve got films such as Beauty & The Beast, Mulan and Aladdin coming. The latter now has a director, with Guy Ritchie stepping into the breach.