Michael James Scott Ends 4,000-Plus-Show Genie Run on May 3
Michael James Scott will take his final bow as Genie in Aladdin on May 3, ending a Broadway run that stretched across more than 4,000 “Friend Like Me” tap-dance-break sequences. He has played the role since the show’s opening day in 2014, and the New Amsterdam Theatre performance closes one of the longest single-role stretches in the production.
Genie talks and 4,000-plus run
4,000-plus performances is the number that defines Scott’s exit. He began as a standby for original Genie James Monroe Iglehart, then settled into a version of the role that he said depended on personality as much as technique. “Authenticity is extremely important to be successful in this role, because it's so tied to who you are, that sort of personality.”
2014 was the start point, and it is the reason this departure lands as more than a routine cast change. Scott has stayed with Aladdin since opening day, turning a supporting part into a durable Broadway assignment that helped anchor the show’s long life.
Beyond Broadway and the West End
Scott has also played Genie on the national tour, in Australia, and in London’s West End, which makes this a franchise-wide departure from a character he has carried in multiple markets. “Once I was able to unlock that, I feel like that's where my Genie got to the place where it is today, because I was able to unlock this unapologetic thing that is Michael James Scott. And I'm still working on it.”
May 3 also marks a pivot into other work. Scott said he is preparing to explore opportunities outside Aladdin and will star as Nurse Dubois in ABC’s Scrubs reboot, which he shot in Canada on weekdays while performing in Aladdin on the weekends.
New Amsterdam Theatre exit
“It's everything and the kitchen sink, honestly.” Scott used that line for the final weeks of his run, and it fits the business reality here: Broadway is losing a signature performer who has become closely tied to one of the show’s most visible numbers. “I’m really proud that I got to do this, and I'm proud that I am one of the few people to say that I've been able to be in a role this long and really sit in it.”
His run also carries a rarer distinction he named himself: “And even more rare, an actor of color to have gotten to do this.” The handoff leaves Aladdin with a gap that is hard to replace cleanly, because Scott’s version of Genie was built over years of repetition, not a short promotional stop. “It is possible, and it can be done, and we can do it.”
