Linda Larkin

Jasmine speaks plainly in Aladdin (1992), even when the screenplay makes her explain more than she needs to. Linda Larkin gives her a likeable directness, and the character’s wishes are seldom difficult to understand. We rate the film highly, with a reservation about the romance that her performance cannot quite overcome. Robin Williams’s Genie is the main attraction, and the songs and elastic animation supply much of the pleasure. Larkin’s quieter contribution is worth noticing alongside them.

Her delivery required a practical adjustment: at Disney’s request, Larkin lowered her naturally high-pitched speaking voice to give Jasmine a more mature, regal sound. It works because she remains approachable; there is no need to make royalty sound permanently occupied with a ceremonial duty. In Ron Clements and John Musker’s film, Scott Weinger supplies Aladdin’s speaking voice, while Lea Salonga sings for Jasmine. That division matters: the warmth of the songs belongs in an assessment of the character, but cannot all be credited to Larkin.

We felt little urgency about Aladdin and Jasmine getting what they wanted, because their conversations kept explaining needs we already understood. The screenplay, credited to Clements, Musker, Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, asks the pair to spend too much time examining themselves. Larkin and Weinger are likeable together, but their directness cannot make all that explanation sound easy. A little less explanation would have given both performances more room for the ease that the spoken scenes need.

Her subsequent work has repeatedly returned to that voice. She reprised Jasmine in The Return of Jafar (1994), Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996) and the Aladdin television series (1994–1995), then again in Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018). Alongside those appearances, the role has continued through games, including the Kingdom Hearts series. Sustaining a character across those different formats is a particular skill, though it gives us less basis for judging what Larkin might do outside it. Start with Aladdin for her unfussy speaking performance, and accept that the romance is not its strongest reason to watch.