Kevin Hart Was in The Running for The Role of Genie in Disney’s Live Action Remake of Aladdin.

Disney’s animated movies have etched themselves into entertainment history with several, if not all, of their animated ventures throughout the 90’s and early 2000’s being considered classics that are enjoyed to this day. Given their timeless nature, Disney has been remaking/re-imagining them in live-action versions, starting with 2015’s Cinderella, and most recently, the commercially acclaimed Beauty and The Beast, starring Emma Watson as Belle. With several more planned, one that is about to enter production is Aladdin, directed by Guy Ritchie.

Amid the looming start of production, casting is well under way, and as recently as this week, Variety reported that Will Smith is the front-runner to play Genie. With the character having been voiced by the legendary Robin Williams in the original animated version, Smith certainly has big shoes to fill.

However, according to a tweet from Variety film reporter Justin Kroll, that task could have fallen on the shoulders of Kevin Hart:

Hey @ShowbizSimon and @TheInSneider funny you said Kevin Hart for Iago in ALADDIN cause they actually went out to him for the Genie B4 Will

— Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) April 21, 2017

The tweet also makes mention of how freelance film and entertainment journalist and Forbes contributor, Simon Thompson, as well as The Wrap and Variety author Jeff Sneider, were speculating Hart’s potential involvement as Iago.

The Genie may well be going Will Smith’s way, but Iago is a role I could see Kevin Hart pull off with aplomb.

Sources: Heroic Hollywood.

Written By: Adel Naqvi