Disney has released the first full-length trailer for its live-action adaptation of the 1992 cartoon musical “Aladdin”.

The film, directed by Guy Ritchie and featuring a script by John August, will be a live-action take on Disney’s own version of the classic folktale of One Thousand and One Nights fame, in which street orphan Aladdin pretends to be a prince in order to win the hand of Princess Jasmine.

The cast features Will Smith as Genie, Mena Massoud as Aladdin, Naomi Scott as Jasmine, Marwan Kenzari as Jafar, Billy Magnussen as an unnamed character, and Nasim Pedrad as Mara, Jasmine’s handmaiden.

Will Smith will not only play blue genie in the new Aladdin remake, he will also play blue rapping genie, a role he’s taking over from the late hyperactive voice-acting star Robin Williams.

In the trailer, Smith was also heard doing a rap version of “Friend Like Me,” a song that Williams sang in the original 1992 Aladdin.

Aladdin will be released in cinemas in May.

Disney is engaged in the project of remaking all its old animated movies. Some of the live-action remakes coming out in 2019, include Tim Burton’s Dumbo (March 28) and Jon Favreau’s The Lion King (July 19). Other animated classics that are getting remakes from Disney include Mulan, The Little Mermaid, The Lady and the Tramp, Snow White and Pinocchio.

 

See the official trailer: