{
  "id": 11775492,
  "title": "Leonard Nimoy Was In Tim Burton's TV Version Of Aladdin With James Earl Jones As The Genie",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/03/leonard-nimoy-was-in-tim-burtons-tv-version-of-aladdin-with-james",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-03T21:12:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TVLine",
    "slug": "tvline",
    "url": "https://www.tvline.com/2272064/leonard-nimoy-tim-burton-version-aladdin-james-earl-jones-genie/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In the 1980s, a unique collaboration brought together Leonard Nimoy, James Earl Jones, and Tim Burton for a live-action adaptation of Aladdin on the cult-favorite TV series Faerie Tale Theatre. The episode, titled \"Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp,\" featured Nimoy as a Jafar-esque sorcerer who tricked Aladdin (Robert Carradine) into retrieving an ordinary-looking lamp. There were two genies in this version of the story: Abdul, played by James Earl Jones, and the Genie of the Lamp, also played by James Earl Jones. Valerie Bertinelli starred as Princess Sabrina, and Joseph Maher played the Sultan. Tim Burton, known for his work on Pee-wee's Big Adventure, brought his signature style to the episode with clever shadow puppetry, forced perspective, and surreal set designs. Despite budgetary constraints, Nimoy seemed to enjoy his role as the menacing and campy sorcerer, while James Earl Jones delivered a hilarious and appealingly boisterous performance as the Genie. Although the episode has a moderate IMDb rating of 6.5, many fans found it to be a deserving and entertaining charmer, praising Nimoy and Jones for their outstanding performances.",
  "summary": "This 1980s anthology series featured an episode with Leonard Nimoy, James Earl Jones, and Robert Carradine in a whimsical take on the tale of Aladdin.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}