Has there ever been a more anomalous pairing than Guy Ritchie of all directors doing Disney‘s live-action “Aladdin” film? The 2019 movie is an outlier in Ritchie’s filmography, but yes, he indeed directed it. And Ritchie also directs the upcoming sequel, and what’s more, he wants disgraced actor Will Smith back as his Genie.
EW reports (via The Hollywood Reporter) that Ritchie would love for Smith to reprise his Genie role in the planned sequel. “I’ve never met a more lovely man, and working with him was one of the most wonderful, great experiences I’ve ever had,” Ritchie told THR at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia. “I never saw anything other than the consummate, generous gentleman. I wouldn’t have any issue casting Will Smith in anything, because, as I say, he was just the f—ing perfect gentleman.”
Of course, “the f—ing perfect gentleman” that is Will Smith also slapped Chris Rock on stage during the live Oscars telecast earlier this year, and that’s not a very gentlemanly thing to do. Months later, Smith still deals with the consequences of his actions. He’s been banned from attending all Academy-sanctioned events for the next decade. And while Apple is high on Antoine Fuqua‘s “Emancipation” this awards season, with Smith’s performance in it getting lots of buzz, it’s not likely the actor will win any awards for the film. He may be in the conversation, but Smith is still in the Hollywood dog house, and that’s not going to change any time soon.
Still, Smith has gone to great lengths to apologize for his behavior on the Oscars telecast, including an appearance on “The Daily Show” with Trevor Noah on Monday night. “That was a horrific night, as you can imagine,” Smith said during his time on the show. “There are many nuances and complexities to it. But, at the end of the day, I lost it, and I guess what I would say: You just never know what somebody’s going through, you know?” Or, and hear me out, Will, maybe it’s not that nuanced and complicated, and you overreacted to a joke on national television…
But Smith continued to explain himself: “I was going through something that night. Not that that justifies my behavior at all. You’re asking, what did I learn? It’s that we’ve just gotta be nice to each other, man. It’s hard. I guess the thing that was most painful for me is, I took my hard and made it hard for other people. I understood the idea of when they say hurt people hurt people.” That’s all well and good, Mr. Smith, but it’s not likely any of these words will undo the damage done to your public perception and your acting career.
But maybe Smith has a gig in the near future with Ritchie and “Aladdin 2.” As for Ritchie, he’s in the most prolific stage of his career. He’s currently filming “The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare” with Henry Cavill and Eiza González, and Netflix‘s TV series based on “The Gentlemen” is in production now, too. Ritchie also has an untitled film with Jake Gyllenhall on the way, currently in post-production (which may be titled “The Interpreter“). And, good news: Ritchie’s “Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre” finally gets a theatrical release on January 12, 2023 after a year of delays.
So, that’s three Guy Ritchie movies before the director potentially reunites with Smith for “Aladdin 2.” Oh, and don’t forget Ritchie’s live-action “Hercules” for Disney, too. Meanwhile, Will Smith has zero projects lined up, thanks to the consequences of his actions. So it goes.