Things You Don't Know About Aladdin's Jafar

Jafar is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Pictures' 31st animated feature film Aladdin (1992). He is voiced by American actor Jonathan Freeman, who also portrayed the character in the Broadway musical adaptation. An inspiration to the character is the villain Jafar, played by Conrad Veidt in The Thief of Bagdad, from which Aladdin borrows several character ideas and plot elements. The Jafar of Disney's Aladdin plays essentially the same part as the character from the 1940 movie, and is drawn with notable similarity to Conrad Veidt's looks. Animator Andreas Deja decided to design Jafar in a way he was contrasting to the other characters, with many vertical lines against the curvy designs based on Al Hirschfeld.[2] Jonathan Freeman, who composers Alan Menken and Howard Ashman met when he auditioned for Little Shop of Horrors and had previously invited Freeman to audition for both The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, said that the artwork was what got him truly interested in the role, declaring that "once I saw those heavy lidded eyes, that long narrow face, I knew that Jafar was going to be something really special". He was the first actor cast, and spent one year and nine months recording dialogue, for months without any other actors to interact, and later interrupting theater tours to fly to Los Angeles and record newly written lines.[3] When Deja first met Freeman, he was surprised to see the lack of physical similarity to the character, but included some of Freeman's acting and gesturing into Jafar's animation. In Aladdin, Jafar is the Grand Vizier of Agrabah, the Sultan's most trusted advisor. He is also an evil sorcerer. Jafar secretly plots to obtain the Genie's magical oil lamp and rule Agrabah. Early in the film, Aladdin is imprisoned in the palace dungeons, as arranged by Jafar using his influence over the guards. He lies to Princess Jasmine that Aladdin has already been executed while pretending to be shocked that he had mistakenly believed that Aladdin abducted her. Jafar (disguised as a fellow prisoner) approaches him, striking a deal with Aladdin. In exchange for Aladdin's help in retrieving the lamp from the Cave of Wonders, Jafar reveals an escape route from the prison and promises him a reward if he succeeds, who soon reveals that the reward is death. When the plan fails, Aladdin and the lamp are lost. The Sultan later scolds Jafar for supposedly executing an innocent life behind his back without consulting him, in which Jafar pretends to regret his actions and promises not to do it again. When Iago suggests an alternative plan, Jafar next decides to, using the hypnotic powers of his cobra-headed staff, manipulate the Sultan into mandating a marriage between himself and Jasmine. This plan also instigates Jafar's lust towards Jasmine and thus he genuinely wants to have her as his bride. However, he is impeded by Aladdin, who had discovered the Genie and used his first wish to become a prince. Seeing “Prince Ali” as a potential threat to his plans and a rival for Jasmines’s hand in marriage, he plots to dispose of him. After a second attempt by Jafar on his life, Aladdin (with the help of the Genie as his second wish) survives and then exposes Jafar's plot against the Sultan, but Jafar learns that Aladdin possesses the lamp before making his escape. Iago steals the lamp from Aladdin and Jafar becomes the Genie's new master. Jafar uses his first two wishes to become Sultan and the world's most powerful sorcerer. Jafar assumes control of the palace (which is lifted off the ground and put on the main top of a mountain by Genie) and banishes Aladdin to a frozen wasteland. Jafar then turns the Sultan into a puppet, allowing Iago to torture the Sultan by force-feeding him crackers as revenge for the crackers the Sultan fed Iago. A horrified Jasmine begs Jafar to stop and Jafar does so. Jafar, seeking a queen to rule Agrabah alongside him, offers Jasmine his hand in marriage. Jasmine angrily refuses and throws a cup of wine in his face. An angered Jafar decides to use his final wish to wish for Jasmine to fall desperately in love with him. Genie tries to inform Jafar that he cannot use his magic to make people fall in love, but Jafar, grabbing him by the beard, demands him to do it anyway. Their argument causes him to not notice that Aladdin has returned and Jasmine decides to help Aladdin steal back the lamp by pretending that she is now in love with Jafar. Jafar, believing that Genie has somehow granted him his wish, goes up to Jasmine to seduce her without realizing she is tricking him. He notices Aladdin, however, from the reflection of Jasmine's crown, and he realizes the whole thing was a ruse. Aladdin battles Jafar (who has turned into a giant cobra) and taunts him with the fact that he is only the second-most powerful being on Earth after Genie who was the one who gave him his power in the first place