For 28 year-old Mena Massoud, it seemed like being cast as Aladdin in Disney's live-action remake would open up a whole new world of career opportunities. But in an in-depth new feature for The Daily Beastthe actor speaks up about his post-Aladdin audition dry spell:

“I want people to know that it’s not always dandelions and roses when you’re doing something like 'Aladdin'. ‘He must have made millions. He must be getting all these offers.’ It’s none of those things. I haven’t had a single audition since Aladdin came out.”

This is pretty shocking news. Although no one is exactly describing 2019's Aladdin as... ahem... good, Massoud's charisma was one of the lackluster movie's highlights. And for a breakout role, what's more impressive than the titular character of an updated family classic that grossed more than $1 billion? And your co-star is Will Smith? Something isn't adding up.

Massoud, an Egyptian immigrant who moved to Canada, describes the struggle of finding roles that "aren’t terrorists or bring negative connotations because of the color of their skin or ethnicity."

He describes himself as a "wild card" actor, brought in as a token option for a role originally written as Caucasian. Despite all this, Massoud assures that he is very grateful to the experience Aladdin brought, including working with Smith and the opportunity to see elements of his culture not usually depicted on the big screen "meant the world" to him.

You can watch Massoud in the upcoming noir-thriller Reprisal, which premieres on Hulu December 6th, 2019.

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