Disney Faces Backlash Over Plans For ‘Aladdin’ Spinoff Starring Billy Magnussen

Reports began to surface this week that Disney is considering making an Aladdin spinoff focusing on the character of Prince Anders (Billy Magnussen.)  Though anyone who has seen the Guy Ritchie live-action version would agree that Magnussen’s character was very amusing-  for a production that prided itself on diversity the move isn’t being received well by critics.

News broke on Friday that the Disney+ streaming service is creating this new feature based on Magnussen’s bit character Prince Anders. However, people were quick to take to Twitter to criticize the move by Disney particularly in light of news about Aladdin actor Mena Massoud that came out just three days earlier. 

You see, Massoud revealed in an interview last week that since his turn as the title character in Disney’s live-action remake (which we might add went on to gross over $1 billion for Disney), Massoud hasn’t landed a single interview for a part.  He had this to say, “I’m kind of tired of staying quiet about it. I want people to know that it’s not always dandelions and roses when you’re doing something like Aladdin. ‘He must have made millions. He must be getting all these offers.’ It’s none of those things. I haven’t had a single audition since Aladdin came out.”

News that a character in a small role would be getting his own spinoff just days after the actor that played Aladdin revealed he couldn’t get work spread like wildfire on social media, with many voicing their concerns: 

pic.twitter.com/igqmjcKYty

— Angie J. Han (@ajhan) December 6, 2019

Just so we’re clear.

Mena Massoud, who starred in the blockbuster ALADDIN remake, can’t get an audition anywhere.

But Billy Magnussen, who plays the white comic relief character they added to the film for no good reason, gets his own spinoff.

🤬https://t.co/QATfxVHxPM

— William Bibbiani (@WilliamBibbiani) December 7, 2019

A white man can get a spinoff of a film that’s made up almost entirely of POC (save for him) while the actor who played Aladdin can’t even get an audition https://t.co/yq8QZV1mRf

— Aaron 🦇 (@aaronfraggle) December 6, 2019

It will be interesting to see what impact the backlash has on plans for the project. As of going to print, we know that the project is slated to be produced by Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich both who produced the Aladdin remake. Jordan Dunn and Michael Kvamme were reportedly recruited to write the script for the film. 

This is a story that we’ll be watching closely here at MickeyBlog and we promise to keep you posted about this and other projects slated for the new Disney+ streaming service.