‘Aladdin 2’ would mark the return of Will Smith to the cinema after the slap at the Oscar

It’s been almost a year since that infamous Oscar night when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock live and in the middle of the stage and since then the star has kept a pretty low profile when it comes to public appearances and new contracts. In these months Smith has been rehabilitated, was sanctioned by the Academy without being able to attend the gala for 10 years, He apologized, apologized again and lost several projects, such as the sequel to ‘Bright’ or ‘Bad Boys 4’ and ‘Fast and Loose’, which were paralyzed.

It is true that we saw him again promoting ‘Towards freedom’, the latest from Antoine Fuqua, but it was filmed before the accident and he has not signed new contracts during this time. Although that may be about to change. According to some rumors collected by The Sun, the redemptive work done by Smith made Disney happy that they will once again have him as the genius in the sequel to ‘Aladdin’.

The biggest financial success

Upon its premiere in 2019 and despite negative reviews and jokes, ‘Aladdin’ was a huge box office success and the first film for Smith and Guy Ritchie to cross the $1 billion mark at the box office. Disney immediately got to work planning the sequel and although it is not official that they intend to get the actor back to play the Genie, an anonymous source assured the medium that he will not only return, but that he will have more prominence:

“This would be one of the first films Will made after the Oscar slap”the source tells The Sun, “And that’s pretty amazing, since it’s going to be in a kid’s movie. He’s worked a lot on himself and agreed that it will all be over when the movie comes out. The first installment was a huge success,” so it would be silly not to do another one, and it would be a real shame to have to replace Will for what happened. So Disney is willing to back him up and bring him back into the fold.”

Already last December, Ritchie sided with Smith, assuring that he would work with him again on any project, including the sequel to ‘Aladdin’ which he directed: “I have never met a more charming man and working with him has been one of the most beautiful and wonderful experiences I have ever had. I have never seen a side of him other than a consummate and generous gentleman. I would have no problem choosing Will Smith not at all, because, as I said, he was always a perfect gentleman.” Ritchie has other projects underway with Disney, As the live of ‘Hercules’ which is inspired by the dances of TikTok and which will be produced by Joe Russo and Anthony Russo.