Aladdin

## Aladdinعلاء الدين

### Likes

Acceptance, adventures, seeing the world, helping others, outwitting Razoul, apples, acrobatics, watermelon, bread, magic carpet rides with Jasmine

### Dislikes

Danger, discrimination, poverty, Jasmine being upset, Jafar, evil schemes, Abu stealing for selfish reasons, Genie's sass, being himself (formerly)

### Powers and abilities

High intelligence
Experienced in hand-to-hand combat
Agility and athleticism

## Family information

### Parents

Cassim (father)
Zena † (mother)

### Other relatives

Behan Yerbak (uncle)
Sultan (father-in-law)
Sultana † (mother-in-law)
Sharma (cousin-in-law)
Bobolonius † (great-grandfather-in-law)

### Pets

Abu (monkey)
Iago (parrot)

 ―Aladdin

**Aladdin** is the main protagonist of Disney's 1992 animated film of the same name.
A former street rat living in the beautiful city of Agrabah, Aladdin spent most of his life, before meeting Jasmine, scraping and stealing for food in order to survive, along with his monkey pet, Abu.

Aladdin is based on the fabled character of the *Aladdin* folktales, made from the *One Thousand and One Nights* stories.

## Background

Aladdin was a boy who was born to Cassim and Zena. Due to their poor background, Cassim left his family in hopes for obtaining the Hand of Midas, so that his family could live a better life. But before Cassim left, he handed Zena a dagger to protect Aladdin from any danger. Aladdin then grew up thinking that his father was dead, and never knew him.
A few years later, Aladdin's mother, Zena died, leaving Aladdin to be an orphan and care for himself. When Cassim came back to Agrabah, he could not find his wife or son in their home anymore, and believing they were dead, Cassim ran off, soon becoming the leader of the Forty Thieves.

When Aladdin was seven, he had his first encounter with Razoul, the new captain of the Sultan's guard, after stealing an apple from a fruit stand. Initially, the boy managed to outmaneuver the guards, but was eventually apprehended and sentenced to detention within the palace dungeon; however, he managed to escape by picking the locks to his chains. While in his mid-teen years, he stole a vest, a pair of pants, and a fez from a clothesline, which would form his signature outfit.

At the age of ten, Aladdin was best friends with a fellow street rat and thief, Amal, but unlike Aladdin, he stole money and valuables for his own selfish greed, which Aladdin was strongly against. Aladdin was present when Amal disappeared, unaware that he was taken and became an El Khatib, serving one of his future adversaries, Mirage. When he was sixteen, Aladdin fell in with a group of circus performers and con artists: Aziz, Fatima, Minos, and their pet monkey, Abu.

Aladdin and Abu would form a brotherly relationship throughout this endeavor, and would eventually leave the circus, but remain together as both partners and best friends.

### Development

In the earliest stages of the story, Aladdin was portrayed as a much younger character—a boy, as opposed to a young man. The idea was brought upon by animator Glen Keane, who believed Aladdin, the lead of an underdog story should have a more meager, vulnerable appearance to match his role in the film's narrative. In addition, he claimed that typical Disney films have a sort of class system with their characters, such as the cartoonish sidekicks, the dramatic villains, the beautiful heroines, and the boring "Prince Charming"-type heroes that "nobody ever wanted to animate". Though directors Ron Clements and John Musker enjoyed the idea, executive producer, Jeffrey Katzenberg did not, feeling the romantic relationship between a meek Aladdin and the beautiful Princess Jasmine would come off as unrealistic, as Jasmine wouldn't find herself physically attracted to that portrayal of Aladdin. Katzenberg saw the early versions of Aladdin to be along the lines of Michael J. Fox, but should instead be along the lines of Tom Cruise, in terms of appearance.

Glen Keane rectified the issue, making Aladdin a tad more muscular, with broader shoulders, and more defined features. However, to keep in touch with the original concept, Keane, Musker, and Clements worked to retain a sense of youth and innocence to Aladdin through his facial design and character portrayal, prominent during the film's more comedic scenes.

### Personality

Despite his upbringing, at the start of the film, Aladdin was a generally optimistic, fun-loving, and charming character. Though he was forced to steal for survival, he showed joy in escaping the brutish guards, alongside his sidekick Abu, and showed an attempt to find enjoyment in the struggles of his day-to-day life. Nevertheless, though he did not mind stealing from the marketplace denizens, albeit forcibly so, Aladdin was, in no way, a selfish character. Not only were the thefts for survival, as mentioned before, but Aladdin was also never above sacrificing his food for the less fortunate of Agrabah, such as starving children. This is an example of Aladdin's selflessness, which was showcased several times throughout the film, specifically for the sake of Jasmine, and most notably, during the finale, Genie. This trait was also carried over to the further stories of the franchise, such as *The Return to Jafar*, where the street rat is shown to commonly rob lairs of thieves and donate the stolen jewels and riches to Agrabah's less fortunate citizens.

While harboring a modest amount of physical prowess, Aladdin's true strength lies within his intelligence and wit. He utilizes these aspects to best his enemies, and such practices have proven effective in various situations throughout the franchise. He is a quick-thinker, with the ability to formulate a scheme (usually varying in scale, making him rather versatile) that ends in his favor. Aladdin also takes advantage of his societal stereotype to further his schemes, as most wouldn't expect a meager street urchin to have the intellect to outwit others.

Although generally cheery and fun-loving in nature, Aladdin was also shown to be insecure throughout the original film's events. Being a street rat, Aladdin normally faced discrimination in the city of Agrabah and was seen as a worthless member of society. This cruelty eventually led Aladdin to believe such claims; he saw himself as unworthy of Princess Jasmine's affections, believing she deserved someone of higher class and, by extension, someone who can provide for her. These insecurities would prompt Aladdin to perform negative acts such as compulsively lying, going back on promises, and hiding his true self under the guise of "Prince Ali".

Once the climax of the original film arrives, however, Aladdin is stripped of his aid (including magic and the help of his allies), forcing him to act independently to save the city. He does so by putting his wit to use and successfully ends the battle victorious. Following these events, Aladdin became more accepting of his status, refusing to continue living a lie, and embracing who he is as a person.

As seen throughout episodes of the television series, however, Aladdin's insecurities haven't diminished completely. Although more accepting of his status as a "street rat", Aladdin remained somewhat self-conscious when given important tasks to complete, as seen in the episode "Mudder's Day", where the Sultan was confident enough to place Aladdin in charge of an expedition, though the latter would continuously doubt his own leadership out of anxiousness. In "My Fair Aladdin", Aladdin made an attempt to reform his image to better conform with Jasmine's dinner guests, consisting of haughty, high-classed royalty. This would only result in his downfall as the most important person in his life, Jasmine, was unamused by Aladdin's attempts in concealing his true nature. In spite of this, Aladdin's allies, and more specifically Jasmine, would continuously provide support and a catalyst that would aid Aladdin in regaining his confidence. One other noteworthy time, was in "The Return of Malcho", where Aladdin felt insecure when he was placed in charge of Agrabah while the sultan, Jasmine, and most of the group were on vacation and the responsibility of keeping the kingdom safe while having to put up with Iago and Razoul's advice on how the Sultan would handle things. This was put to the test when Iago's old enemy Malcho arrived, and Aladdin had to keep Iago protected in the palace to avoid putting the citizens in danger. Eventually, the stress of dealing with Razoul and Iago's bad advice and bickering were able to snap Aladdin out of his self-doubt, allowing him to take proper leadership and devise a plan that allowed them to successfully trap Malcho.

### Physical Appearance

Animated and designed by Glen Keane, Aladdin is a traditionally handsome, slender, slightly muscular young man with broad shoulders, black, messy hair, thick matching eyebrows, and brown eyes.

As a street rat, his clothing is, unsurprisingly, rather limited. He is barefoot, donning a purple, sleeveless vest, red fez, and baggy, cream pants with a single patch covering a hole within them.

As Prince Ali, however, Aladdin's attire is lavish to coincide with his princely façade. The colors resemble the primary colors of Jasmine's father, the Sultan, consisting mostly of cream, gold, white, and purple. The outfit's appearance, itself, also resembles the Sultan's, consisting of a large turban (with what appears to resemble neck shade coming down on opposite sides) complete with a ruby gem and bluish, deep purple feather, cream undergarments, and a matching top, with a cape flowing down, just below his calves. The outfit is finished with golden brown shoes with swirled tips. His turban also conceals Genie's lamp beneath his head. In *Return of Jafar*, he wears this outfit before encountering Iago and being attacked by Abis Mal and his group.

At the end of the first film, Aladdin wears a purple openly short Arabian coat with a white shoulder armor on both sides of his short coat with gold trim, at the back of his short coat, it resembles a long purple cape, cream pants with a red and brown sash around his waist and the golden-brown shoes from his disguised Prince Ali outfit. He also wears a different kind of fez, colored purple and gold striped.

In *Aladdin and the King of Thieves*, Aladdin now wears a different outfit as opposed to the previous two films.

In its initial appearance before their wedding was interrupted by his father Cassim and at the end of the film where he marries Jasmine and went to their honeymoon by riding a magic carpet, Aladdin wears an outfit similar to his disguised form as Prince Ali as he wears a very long cream openly Arabian royal jacket with a large sailor collar, underneath is a yellow sleeveless tunic with brown trim and a white long-sleeved undershirt, cream pants, and brown shoes with swirled tips. His turban has a different design with brown linings and the feather is yellow with a purple gem in the center. Before wearing this outfit, Aladdin was seen wearing his former primary outfit in the two films but updated; his purple vest now have gold linings in the seams, his red fez also have gold linings, the color of his pants changed from cream to white and no longer have a single patch on the right and now wearing brown curled boots as opposed to barefoot.

Later when he confronts his father Cassim and being tested by him to face Sa'Luk, Aladdin wears black undergarments with a matching sleeveless top with a red obi around his waist and a medium blue long-sleeved shirt. He also adorned with a blue cloak that can cover his head and face and a gold emblem on the left side. This outfit is also his father's primary outfit.

His main outfit throughout the movie and his crossover appearance in *Hercules: The Series*, Aladdin wears a purple sleeveless garb with gold trim, a white long sleeve undershirt with dark brown folded sleeves, light blue pants with a red sash and dark brown shoes with swirled tips. When he meets his father Cassim for the first time, his main outfit is covered with a cream cloak and a gray turban on his head.

He later rips the right long sleeve into the shorter sleeve from his main outfit to cover the Hand of Midas.

## Live Action Appearances

### Aladdin (2019)

Aladdin keeps his role as the titular protagonist in the live-action adaptation of his movie, portrayed by Mena Masoud. Many traits of his characters are kept, adding a deep knowledge of treasures and luxury goods, which help him identify a disguised Jasmine as a person coming from the palace. Aladdin also wears a shirt under his trademark gilet, and when he's transformed into a prince, he's not "Ali Ababwa", but "Ali *from* Ababwa", changing his false surname into the name of his imaginary kingdom.

Aladdin first appears walking around the street markets of Agrabah along with his pet monkey Abu where he usually gets into trouble with merchants and guards because of Agrabah's rule about thieves. He and Dalia manage to escape the guards before the two get arrested. Outsmarting the guards, Aladdin takes Dalia to his home and shows her a view of Agrabah in which the two hear the arrival of Prince Anders from Skånland to Agrabah. When Aladdin encounters a guard rudely asking him to make way for the prince, Aladdin upsets him to which the guard threatens him that he will have a poor life as a street person. Back at home, Aladdin feels upset about the situation he had with the guard furious at him.

The next day, Aladdin's monkey Abu outsmarts a palace guard to get into the Palace of Agrabah in order to marry Princess Jasmine, who refuses to marry Prince Anders after having a conversation with Dalia to which Iago spies on Abu, outsmarting the guard to which he found out that Abu is linked to the "Diamond in the Rough" as Jafar's parrot sees him getting into the palace. Inside the palace, Aladdin disguises himself as a servant to avoid getting caught by the guards and talks with Jasmine and Dalia for a while until his servant hat falls off. The guards then catch him as they found out that Aladdin is the Diamond in the Rough that Jafar is looking for. Aladdin is then taken to the desert, where Jafar can make him rich by finding a magical lamp in the Cave of Wonders to make him rich. The Cave warns him that only one person can enter while Jafar tells him to avoid touching any treasure inside except for the lamp. Inside, Aladdin and Abu walk across the Cave, where they encounter a magic carpet that follows the duo along the way. Aladdin then finds the lamp Jafar is looking for while Abu discovers a ruby he found along the way. As Abu touches the ruby, the Cave begins to rumble as Aladdin notices him doing the thing he should not do. Aladdin and Abu plan to escape the Cave that is collapsing with the help of Carpet, bringing the two to where Jafar is at. Aladdin refuses to give the lamp at first but follows what Jafar tells him. Giving the lamp, Jafar almost causes Aladdin to fall to his demise, but Abu tackles him, causing Jafar to lose the lamp as the Cave collapses.

Stuck in the Cave, Aladdin then devises a plan to figure out how to get out, in which Carpet points to the lamp he is holding, telling Aladdin to rub the lamp. Rubbing the lamp, it spawns a Genie who talks to him and explains that Aladdin never had a friend like him, so Aladdin mingles and makes friends with him during the musical number "Friend Like Me". After the song, the Genie gives out rules when Aladdin only has three wishes when asking the Genie to do something by granting wishes. Aladdin wishes to get out of the Cave in which Genie accepts his request. The Genie gets Aladdin, Abu, and Carpet out of the Cave, using up his first wish.

Meanwhile, in the desert, Aladdin converses with Genie in which Aladdin explains that he wants him to become a prince to get Jasmine's attention. The Genie successfully transforms Aladdin into a prince, using up his second wish and leaving Aladdin to have one more wish left. Since Aladdin (dressed as "Prince Ali") is too big to ride on Abu, Genie transforms him into an elephant in order to get to Agrabah.

Meanwhile, at Agrabah, the citizens on the streets watch Aladdin arriving at the streets where he is cheered on by a large crowd as Aladdin attempts to get Jasmine's attention. At the Palace, Aladdin arrives there to get Jasmine's attention, but she feels unimpressed about his arrival, including various gifts and jewels seen during the musical number "Prince Ali". Aladdin then finally bonds with Jasmine by riding on Carpet, which takes the couple to show the world around them during the musical number "A Whole New World" to which Carpet shows them around various parts near Agrabah instead of other locations outside Agrabah in the animated film. After the song, Jasmine finds out that "Prince Ali" is actually Aladdin, the street person in the market and back at the palace; Jafar also discovers his true identity. Upon discovering his true identity, Jafar begs Aladdin to know if he has the lamp, but Aladdin denies it by telling him he has no lamp. Aladdin is then sent to drown in the ocean when Jafar punishes him for not giving him the lamp.

Underwater, Genie notices Aladdin telling him to escape, but Aladdin cannot talk because he is underwater, so he does the wish for him in order to escape from a watery demise. Back at the palace, Aladdin notices Jafar hypnotizing the Sultan to change his orders to a negative influence to which Aladdin smashes the cobra staff while the Sultan tells the guards to arrest him. Upon remembering people calling him "Prince Ali" to which he explains to himself that Aladdin is not from Ababwa, he had a conversation with the Genie to which he tells him that he always has to tell the truth about if he is really Prince Ali or not. Upon telling this, it upsets the Genie after Aladdin finds out that the second wish Aladdin did was wrong to everyone in Agrabah as he feels upset that he should stop pretending to be a prince from Ababwa to attract Jasmine.

When Jafar gets freed from prison and receives the Genie as his new master, his first wish is to become the ruler of Agrabah; soon as Jafar becomes the ruler of Agrabah, Aladdin, Abu, and Carpet sneak up into Jafar's devious plans. Jafar sends the inhabitants in Agrabah to the dungeon and then sends Aladdin to a frozen wasteland after realizing that "Prince Ali" is actually Aladdin. Afterward, Aladdin is banished to the frigid area while the rest of the inhabitants in the palace are sent to the dungeon. Aladdin finds Abu in the frozen wasteland while he rides on Carpet to escape from a frigid fate. Aladdin, Abu, and Carpet arrive at the palace, where Aladdin notices Jasmine refusing to marry Jafar as Jasmine escapes with the lamp. Jafar then transforms Iago into the size of a roc to get the lamp to retrieve it to him, but the Sultan stops Jafar from doing this task, causing him to lose his turban and his staff (also shrinking Iago back to his normal form). Soon as Jafar gets his staff back, Aladdin and everyone in Agrabah notice Jafar creating a powerful storm to destroy Agrabah, with Aladdin and Jasmine noticing his rage as the two arrive back to the palace.

Aladdin and Jasmine arrive back at the palace, where Jafar grants his final wish to become a powerful genie. The Genie does this wish as Jafar is transformed into a genie; as soon as Jafar prepares to destroy the world, he is unable to because of the gauntlets chaining him, to which Aladdin explains he didn't stop him from doing so. Soon as Jafar and Iago are sucked back into the lamp, the Genie banishes them to the Cave of Wonders while Aladdin apologizes to Jasmine for lying to her and everyone in Agrabah. The Genie then arrives and is reunited with Aladdin, where he explains to him that he must marry a princess he loves to which Aladdin chose Princess Jasmine to be his wife. Aladdin uses his final wish to set the Genie free; later, Aladdin finally marries Jasmine in front of a large crowd as Jasmine finally found a prince to marry. Aladdin and everyone in the palace are later seen dancing to the reprise of "Friend Like Me" during the credits.

## Video Games

### Disney Heroes Battle

***Disney Prince Wiki*** has an individual article based on ***Aladdin***.
## Gallery

***Disney Prince Wiki*** has a collection of images and media related to ***Aladdin***.

1. ↑ Marvel's *Aladdin*, issue #1