He was also designed with elegant curves to reflect the calligraphy and architecture of the period, which also provided Genie with his trademark array of expressions. A partial influence on that is the 1940 Thief of Baghdad film, where he kind of has that build.” “And we eventually arrived at the kind of strongman genie that we've got in the final film. “We had genies in turbans and vests and things like that,” Goldberg said of the animation team’s initial ideas for the character. Inspiration for Genie's design included The Thief of Baghdad and the letter “S.”

“One thing that I really enjoy about Robin's performance is that we could have gotten any number of people who could do very slick impressions or who could do lots of funny schtick, but underlying it all is Robin's warmth in his performance,” said Eric Goldberg, the character’s supervising animator.Ĥ. “We wrote the script for Robin Williams from the beginning.” “Right from the start, we saw the Genie as a very special character in this movie, and the concept of him being able to change form constantly was there right from the start,” said co-director Ron Clements. The Genie was written for Robin Williams. “An artist could spend a week just trying to get a few seconds of a performance … If they can do that, that’s good,” Musker said of the animation team, which included 40 principals - more than on The Little Mermaid - who worked on the movie for nearly a year and a half.ģ. Still largely hand drawn, the animating process was lengthy, with five feet of film equating just a few seconds of screen time. It took a LONG time to complete the movie’s animation. “We saw Beauty and the Beast when it was completed last year at the wrap party and we just sort of just slumped down in our chairs, because we saw how good it was,” Aladdin co-director John Musker told ET at the time.

It also became the first animated movie to ever be nominated a Best Picture Oscar - a feat not repeated until 2009 with Up - in addition to picking up a nomination for Best Sound and taking home two awards for Best Original Score and Best Original Song.

Beauty and the Beast set a high bar for success.Īt the time, Beauty and the Beast - the critically acclaimed film about an enchanted kingdom and the young woman who breaks its spell - was the first animated movie to gross over $100 million in North America, and was Disney’s most successful theatrical release. To commemorate its milestone, ET digs back into its vaults to bring you 25 facts and tidbits you may not have known about the film:ġ. With an enduring love ballad, a comedy legend’s one-of-a-kind performance and a lesson on the importance of staying true to yourself, Aladdin became an instant classic, continuing Disney’s successful run at the box office while ushering in a new age of animated cinema.

Aladdin old guy