Aladdin actor Mena Massoud has deactivated his Twitter account after facing backlash for a tweet about Disney’s upcoming live-action remake of the animation The little Mermaid.
Massoud played the title role in Disney’s 2019 live-action version of Aladdin, alongside Will Smith.
Now the Egyptian-Canadian artist is facing controversy for taking a swipe at The little Mermaid in response to a recent tweet Since The Hollywood handle, saying the new film should post similar opening weekend numbers at the box office as Aladdinwhich eventually grossed $1.05 billion worldwide
“The little Mermaid aims to earn $115 million in its opening weekend at the domestic box office. In comparison, Aladdin earned $112 million when it opened,” read the tweet about the two Disney films.
“THE LITTLE MERMAID” is poised to earn $115 million in its opening weekend at the domestic box office.
By comparison, ‘ALADDIN’ earned $112 million when it opened. pic.twitter.com/vpIoYcYcQ2
— The Hollywood Handle (@hollywoodhandle) May 12, 2023
Related story: ‘Aladdin’ actor Mena Massoud says he struggles to get new roles
Massoud replied to the message saying he doubted The little Mermaid will have the stamina Aladdinbut the new movie will likely have a sequel.
“Our film was unique in that audiences went to watch it multiple times,” Massoud wrote. “It’s the only way to reach the billion dollar mark with our opening. My guess is TLM won’t cross the billion-dollar mark, but will undoubtedly get a sequel.
The tweet has since been deleted, but TMZ captured a screenshot of the post, which has been viewed over 330,000 times.
Some social media users have accused Massoud of anti-Blackness because Halle Bailey, who plays Ariel in The little Mermaid, is African American.
“LMAO @MenaMassoud Aladdin deleted his account. He couldn’t stand the heat of the anti-black mess he was trying to start here,” one person tweeted.
“First of all, who the hell is Mena Massoud?? We all know Will Smith was the main reason we all went to see Aladdin. And I’ll stand 10 toes down for TLM. This is exactly why we need to pack all theaters on May 26. Bring your children, nieces, nephews, grandchildren. The whole family!” another person tweeted.
“Aladdin won a billion, but what did he bring to Mena Massoud’s career? Is he a household name or ‘just the guy who played Aladdin? This man’s nerve, someone else tweeted.
“It gives jobless and loser behavior because it came out of nowhere like wow”, someone else writing.
Following its opening on May 22, 2019, Aladdin earned $355.5 million in North America and $698.7 million overseas.
A sequel to the film was in the works, but Massoud said in a March 15, 2023 tweet captured by web of film that a follow-up film is “very unlikely at this point”.
While many fans are excited about the The little Mermaid, others took to social media to express their anger when Halle Bailey was cast in the lead role. As previously reported, some Twitter users accused Disney of “ruining” the film by casting a woman of color as the fictional redhead.
Despite the naysayers, the film is on track to do big business at the box office.
The little Mermaid is directed by Rob Marshall and also stars Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy and Javier Bardem.
The film opens nationwide on May 26.