OlderMena Massoud Shows Off His Giant Flower Tattoo in 'Man About Town' Feature
Mena Massoud is giving us major heart palpitations in his new feature with Man About Town magazine.
The 27-year-old Aladdin star went shirtless in many of the photos, set in a garage for the mag, and opened up about taking on the role of a leading man and the power of diversity in the new film. Check it:
On connecting with Aladdin: “[Aladdin] is a young man finding his way in the world. He’s trying to figure out his identity. When he meets a pretty girl and he thinks he’s not good enough…. I grew up feeling like that. I also felt like an outcast. I went to a high school that didn’t have a lot of visibly ethnic people. I felt very different from everybody. And Aladdin is the same. […] I connected to that, because I knew I could bring my own experience to the role.”
On the diversity of Aladdin: “Everyone on screen is a person of colour and not only that, we’re all from very different places […] You know, I’m Egyptian-Canadian. Naomi is British-Indian. Marwan is Tunisian-Dutch. Navid [Negahban] is Iranian-American, but he also spent time in Germany. It’s all incredibly diverse and I hope people celebrate that.”
On being a leading man: “It’s harder for me to be a leading man, because of the lack of opportunity and the fact that people are not used to it. It’s going to take time for people to get used seeing a person of color as a lead actor, because we have been doing only one thing for so many years.”
See more of Mena‘s feature on ManAboutTown.tv
