Disney’s live-action Aladdin has cast Billy Magnussen as Prince Anders, because a movie without white people is apparently unthinkable.
Potentially another lost brother of Anna and Elsa from Frozen, could this be Disney’s way of launching a live-action cinematic universe?
Ha. No. This is just director Guy Ritchie figuring out a way to add a white person to Aladdin, a movie for which Disney also struggled to find actors of Middle Eastern descent for the lead roles.
Related: Aladdin’s responsibility in a culturally insensitive world
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, the role of “Prince Anders” will be played by Billy Magnussen, whom you may know from The People vs O.J. Simpson and Ingrid Goes West.
The live-action Aladdin movie is inspired by the 1992 animated classic of the same name. Mena Massoud stars as the titular character, with Naomi Scott as Princess Jasmine and Marwan Kenzari as Jafar. Will Smith stars as the Genie.
Prince Anders is not the only original character added for the live-action movie: SNL‘s Nasim Pedrad is playing Mara, Jasmine’s handmaiden and friend.
We don’t yet know how Prince Anders will fit into the story, or how big his role will be. But it is frankly ridiculous that Disney should feel compelled to write white people into a narrative that really does not include them, and if it reminds you of their rumored original plans to whitewash Mulan’s love interest in the upcoming live-action version of Mulan, you’re not alone. WYD, Disney?
Aladdin does not yet have a release date.
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