Play or pause: The Lion King vs. Aladdin

Marley Wells, Web Editor

Disney and Pixar babies, rejoice: we are in the midst of the best reboot season yet. Recently, there has been a major increase in remakes of classic kids movies.

Incredibles 2 and Mary Poppins saw extensive commercial success with Incredibles 2 even breaking box office records. However, it doesn’t stop there. Trailers and/or confirmations about remakes of classics such as The Lion King, Dumbo, Aladdin, Lilo & Stitch, The Little Mermaid, Kim Possible and more have been released. It’s all great in theory, right? Maybe some of these movies should be left in the past, though. Some movies shouldn’t be remade simply for the sake of nostalgia– just like the age-old adage, don’t fix what ain’t broke.

A black isosceles triangle pointing right PLAY: The Lion King

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I am in full support of this. Oh yes. As seen in the trailer, the “live action” (term used loosely as no humans appear in the film) graphics of the film are amazing. I can’t wait to experience the deep misery of Mufasa’s death all over again, but this time on the silver screen and much more realistic. And soul-crushing.

Two congruent black rectangles side-by-side with a space between them PAUSE: Aladdin

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This is just unnecessary. Aladdin has nothing more to give. Yeah, it will be cool to see Will Smith play Genie. But AT WHAT COST? In the upcoming remake, Disney producers made the executive decision to add an entirely new character to the film: Prince Anders, played by Billy Magnussen, Aladdin’s fierce competitor in vying for Princess Jasmine’s affection. Not only is my childhood being ruined by this alteration in plot, but it has sparked controversy across the Internet. Billy Magnussen will be a white actor playing a major character in a movie set in the Middle East almost exclusively cast by people of color. No thanks.