Los Angeles, May 16

Director Guy Ritchie says actor Will Smith is a very "generous artiste" and is always open to trying out something new.

Ritchie worked with Smith on Disney's "Aladdin" which is a thrilling and vibrant live-action adaptation of the studio's animated classic.

Finding the right actor to play the Genie was crucial, especially after the spectacular performance by late Robin Williams. Smith will bring back the character in the new movie.

"Will is a tremendously generous artist in every sense," Ritchie said in a statement.

"A lot of my job was encouraging Will to just be Will, but he was also very open to new ideas. We would riff on different ideas and found a rhythm between us where it quickly became apparent which ideas were going to float and which ones would sink," he added.

Also starring Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott, Marwan Kenzari, Navid Negahban, Nasim Pedrad, Billy Magnussen and Numan Acar, "Aladdin" will open in India on May 24 in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.

Will Smith a generous artiste: Guy Ritchie