Alan Tudyk To Further Erase Gilbert Gottfried In New ALADDIN

I know, I know. The new Aladdin is not the old Aladdin. How could it be? It’s live-action, has an entirely different cast and features a very dignified new genie that not a single person has had cause to laugh at over and over again on Twitter.

But some things are easier to replace than others. Namely, the voice of Iago. It never even occurred to me that Iago would be in this film (though I suppose he showed up in this morning’s trailer). It also never occurred to me that the live-action Iago would speak. And if he did, it REALLY never occurred to me that live-action Iago would not sound like Gilbert Gottfried.

Instead, Iago will sound like Alan Tudyk, who is a delightful actor but doesn’t actually sound like anything specific when he speaks. I’m sure he’ll put on a voice for the bird, but based on his past high profile voice work, that means his Iago will sound more like a robot than an insurance-selling duck. For shame. Will people riot? I don’t know but the answer is yes of course they will fucking riot. This is Aladdin. We’re not playing games here.

Aladdin: We’re Not Playing Games Here will hit theaters May 24.