Robin Williams' performance as the Genie in Aladdin is nothing short of iconic, and the pressure is on for Guy Ritchie and Will Smith to deliver a new Genie in their live-action version of the film. Ritchie talks a bit about their approach to Genie and how they plan to bring him to life without leaning in too much to Williams' portrayal.
Talking to Entertainment Weekly, Ritchie explains, "The great thing about the role of the Genie is that it's essentially a hyperbole for who that individual actor is, so it's a wonderful platform and tapestry for an actor to fill his boots on."
So if the original Genie is just an exaggeration of Williams, then this new version will just be more of Will Smith. According to Smith, he's actually tapped into his previous roles from the 90s, including Independence Day, Bad Boys, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. We don't know if this new Genie will be doing a lot of pop-culture references like Williams' did, but that just makes me more interested to see what the film has in store.
Ritchie continues with his description:
"I wanted a muscular 1970s dad… He was big enough to feel like a force — not so muscular that he looked like he was counting his calories, but formidable enough to look like you knew when he was in the room."
Ritchie also goes on to say that this Genie is very ‘self-aware' and that he "has an ego and is a little bit vain and he cares about how he's presented because he's been doing this for a very long time."
We don't know when the first trailer will be dropping for this film, but I have to say, I'm pretty curious.
Catch Aladdin in theaters May 24, 2019.
See Also: First Look at Live-Action Aladdin Cast is...Interesting?
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