The addition of Robin Williams to the roster really made the movie special. How many of you can act out all of the genie's parts word for word? I know I can. (I do a mean carpet impression, too!)
Read on and find out some cool behind the scenes facts that you probably didn't know — I know I sure didn't!
1. Animators used Robin Williams' stand-up film to convince him to play the part.
Character designer and supervising animator Eric Goldberg says, "I think what probably sold him was the one where he says, 'Tonight, let’s talk about the serious subject of schizophrenia—No, it doesn’t!—Shut up, let him talk!' What I did is animate the Genie growing another head to argue with himself, and Robin just laughed. He could see the potential of what the character could be. I’m sure it wasn’t the only factor, but then he signed the dotted line."
2. Williams was so funny as the genie, animators had to extend pauses after his lines to make room for all the laughter.
They weren't expecting such massive reactions from the audience!
3. Like a lot of modern Disney movies, there are little Easter eggs hidden throughout Aladdin.
If you look closely, you can find The Little Mermaid's Sebastian the Crab and the Beast from Beauty and the Beasthidden throughout the movie.
4. Disney had backups in mind, just in case Williams declined the role (even though it was written just for him).
Other actors they had in mind were John Candy, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy, Martin Short, John Goodman, or Albert Brooks. It just wouldn't have been the same, amirite?
5. Aladdin = Tom Cruise?
The animators watched Tom Cruise movies to nail Aladdin's sexy confidence. Not gonna lie, I definitely had a major crush on Aladdin as a kid (and maybe still do).
6. Part of the charm came from Scott Weinger, the voice of Aladdin.
Remember Steve, DJ Tanner's boyfriend on Full House? Of course you do. All little girls dreamt of running their fingers through that mullet. Well, he's the voice of Aladdin and it's perfect!
7. Disney and Full Housethen did a bunch of crossovers.
Supervising animator Mark Henn appeared in the Disney episode of Full House, as did Weinger. Joey went to visit the animation studio and met Henn, and Weinger dressed up as Aladdin in a cool callback.
8. Gilbert Godfried was not the first choice for Iago. WHAT?!
The role was first offered to Danny DeVito and Joe Pesci, but they both declined. I can't imagine Iago any other way!
9. Aladdin's mother was in the first draft of the movie!
She had a big role in the original version, but instead they cut her and expanded Jasmine's role.
10. Williams also voiced the Peddler, and the famous box scene was made in a really interesting way.
Says animator Goldberg, “One of Jeffrey Katzenberg’s great ideas was to fill a box with stuff, put a cloth over it, and then when Robin’s in front of the mic, pull the cloth off and he riffs with whatever he picks up out of the box. And that’s exactly how we did that character.”
Also, check out this amazing fan theory:
Also, check out this amazing fan theory:
11. Before Aladdin, no famous actors would do voice roles.
Bea Arthur reportedly refused the role of Ursula in The Little Mermaid, and she wasn't even THAT big a name. But after Robin Williams nailed his role, everyone started doing voice acting.
12. Williams was so into being the genie, he was drenched in sweat after every recording session.
People who worked on the movie with him say "he gave it 198 percent."
13. The principal characters were based on simple shapes!
This was a huge departure from Beauty and the Beast, which aimed to portray characters in an ultra-realistic way.
14. The song "Arabian Nights" was changed for racist reasons...
Originally the song had the lyrics, “Oh, I come from a land/From a faraway place/Where the caravan camels roam/Where they cut off your ear/If they don't like your face/It's barbaric, but hey, it's home.”The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (and probably many other people) took offense to the depiction of people from the Middle East, so Disney changed the lyrics to: “Oh, I come from a land/From a faraway place/Where the caravan camels roam/Where it's flat and immense/And the heat is intense/It's barbaric, but hey, it's home.” 15. Never before seen Williams outtakes were just released this fall.
The team went through hundreds of hours of material to show the fans all the work that went into creating the amazing genie.
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