Will Tom Hardy Star in ‘Aladdin’?

Tom Hardy has reportedly been approached for a role in the live-action remake of Aladdin.

The 39-year-old actor could be in with a shot of playing Jafar in the forthcoming blockbuster after the project’s director Guy Ritchie reached out to him about nabbing the part.

A source told The Sun newspaper: “Guy is a huge fan of Tom’s work and securing him would be a major coup. There have been conversations and, although nothing is set in stone and things are subject to change, he’s certainly one of Guy’s favored choices.”

However, although he’s desperate to secure the Mad Max star, Ritchie may be forced to come up with a back-up plan as Hardy’s schedule is looking somewhat stacked right now.

The insider added: “It just depends on schedules and whether he’ll be able to sign up.”

And Hardy isn’t the only person attached to the musical movie at the moment as Little Mix’s Jade Thirlwall is in talks to play Princess Jasmine – though it could disrupt the band.

A source said recently: “Jasmine is Jade’s perfect role, so she’s delighted to have got this far in the process. The talks have been going on for some time now. And the longer they go on, the better her chances are looking. All of the girls have their fingers crossed for her, as they always support each other. But they also know that it would be a huge commitment. Jade would need to film for months, and that’s before promotion for the movie began. So this week they sat down in a break from their tour dance rehearsals and talked about what they might do if Disney did decide to cast her. It was quite an emotional conversation. But they all agreed that they would try to make it work for her around Little Mix commitments. It wouldn’t be easy, but as far as it’s possible, that’s what they want.”

Will Smith is also thought to be on board the project to play The Genie after his negotiations about joining Dumbo, based on the classic 1941 animated family film about the titular big-eared baby elephant who learns to fly in the circus, fell through earlier this year.

Aladdin will start shooting this summer in the UK.