With the $1B+ success of Alice in Wonderland, Disney realized they may be on to something. Audiences who had grown up with so many of their animated classics were eager to see those stories revisited in live-action form, and so we’ve seen Maleficent, Beauty and the Beast, The Jungle Book, and Cinderella all break the bank at the box office with many more adaptations to come. And next on the list is Aladdin, one of the key films in Disney’s animation renaissance of the 1990s.
In a somewhat unusual move, Disney hired Guy Ritchie, best known for Brit gangster comedies and the Sherlock Holmes flicks, to go behind the camera. Not the guy you’d expect for a musical-fantasy set in a far off land, but based on the new teaser he may have been a good choice. The story follows street rat Aladdin (Mena Massoud) who earns three wishes from a magic Genie (Will Smith), which he hopes to use to win the heart of Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott).
Aladdin’s discovery of Genie’s lamp is teased here, but it’s music and the mood which Ritchie looks to have gotten right. The desert land of Agrabah looks gorgeous, as well as the Cave of Wonders. Original composer Alan Menken is doing music for this version, as well, joined by Tim Rice, Howard Ashman, and La La Land songwriters Pasek & Paul.
Aladdin hits theaters on May 24th 2019.
