RUMOR: Guy Ritchie Possibly Eyeing Tom Hardy To Play Jafar In ‘Aladdin’

Disney’s live-action Aladdin might have set its sights on someone to possibly play Jafar in the film. According to The Sun, sources say that director Guy Ritchie wants to have Tom Hardy (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises, Mad Max: Fury Road) to play the villain Jafar.

“Guy is a huge fan of Tom’s work and securing him would be a major coup. There have been conversations and, although nothing is set in stone and things are subject to change, he’s certainly one of Guy’s favoured choices. It just depends on schedules whether he’ll be able to sign up.”

If this turns out to be true, then it’s quite disheartening. As Aladdin is set in the Middle East, casting Tom Hardy is a step backwards. Never mind that he’s a good actor, the movie is meant to cast actors who are Arab or are of Arab descent. This way, the film will be much more authentic and not white-washed like so many films set in the Middle East tend to be.

It’s probably wise to wait and see what happens and who is actually cast, since this is just a rumor and there’s nothing official yet, but even a rumor like this doesn’t strike much confidence in the area of diversity.

Aladdin doesn’t have a release date yet, but stay tuned to Heroic Hollywood for more information about the film as it becomes available.

Source: The Sun