Aladdin was released to positive reviews in 2019 and would eventually gross over $1 billion at the worldwide box office. Despite being one of those live-action Disney remakes that didn't exactly reinvent the wheel, it made for fun viewing and gave Will Smith the chance to prove the doubters wrong with his standout take on the Genie.
A sequel was confirmed not too long ago, but it's been a while since we've heard anything new. We do, however, know Guy Ritchie will return to direct, while the movie isn't currently expected to be based on the animated follow-up The Return of Jafar (a direct-to-video effort that's been largely forgotten).
Similar to Barry Jenkins' planned prequel to The Lion King, it will be an original story, and that's exciting for a number of reasons. Talking to Collider (via Toonado.com), Ritchie offered an update on his project.
"I'd very much like to. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed that experience. It was a great experience," the filmmaker says. "That whole Disney thing, as you can imagine, is such a professional outfit. Just from that perspective, it was so much fun. I would very much like to, we'll wait and see."
"We have been kicking some ideas around for some time now, but it'd be great to do, it would be great to go back there."
It sounds like it's still a little way off from happening, but this is still a promising update that bodes well for Aladdin 2.
Ritchie remains incredibly busy (he's also been tapped to helm Disney's live-action spin on Hercules) so your guess is as good as ours when it comes to how long it will be before the movie conjures its way into theaters. The longer they wait, though, the more interesting it could be, especially if it means we catch up with Aladdin and Jasmine at a later point in their lives.
We're also curious how Genie will become, well, Genie after becoming a human again and getting his own happy ending.
Are you excited about Ritchie's Aladdin sequel?