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Folks, you might want to put your magic carpets away for a bit. If Aladdin star Mena Massoud is to be believed, you might not need them. The star of Guy Ritchie’s live-action adaptation of the iconic Disney animated film has ruled out a return to Agrabah.
Massoud co-starred with Will Smith in the 2019 film, which was a big financial success despite mixed critical reviews, as the legendary role of The Genie of the Lamp, previously played by Robin Williams. Despite the film office success, its actor believes the story has come to an end. Moreover, “Very unlikely at this point,” Massoud wrote on Twitter in response to a fan’s question on the possibility of Aladdin 2 being made. This appears to contradict Ritchie, who spoke frankly and optimistically about the possibility of another round with Agrabah’s most renowned street rat. Talking about the same, Ritchie told Collider that he would “very much like to” do a sequel.
In addition to that, A sequel was originally believed to be in the works at Disney, with the studio employing writers John Gatins (Flight, Real Steel) and Andrea Berloff (Straight Outta Compton, The Kitchen) to figure out where the tale should go next. Ritchie was said to be returning, along with Massoud, Smith, and Naomi Scott, who played Princess Jasmine in the remake. Furthermore, a sequel appeared a no-brainer at the time for Disney, with the first making $1.05 billion at the global box office. But, in a world altered by the epidemic, a number of Disney films have witnessed dwindling financial returns. The risk-to-reward ratio may be deemed too high for the studio, which has indicated a reduction in some sorts of material under the returning leadership of Bob Iger, who replaced his successor Bob Chapek as CEO of the Walt Disney Company.
On the other hand, Ritchie’s latest, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, hit theaters on March 3.