Disney Animator Eric Goldberg Reveals How Robin Williams Helped Bring “Aladdin”’s Genie to Life (Exclusive)

Victoria Edel, Lily BrownTue, August 25, 2026 at 6:21 PM UTC

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Robin Williams in 1994 (left); Genie from ‘Aladdin’ (right)Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic; Disney -

Disney animator Eric Goldberg looked back at working closely with Robin Williams to bring Aladdin‘s Genie to life

Goldberg was the lead animator for Genie in the 1992 movie

Goldberg remembered not only Williams’ many improvisations, but also the warmth he brought to the character

Disney animator Eric Goldberg is remembering the special magic that brought Robin Williams‘ Genie to life in Aladdin.

Goldberg, 71, was honored as a Disney Legend at the 2026 Disney Legends Awards Ceremony on Aug. 16, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. Goldberg joined Disney to work on the 1992 Disney film Aladdin. He was the lead animator for Genie, the character voiced by Williams, who died in 2014 at the age of 63. In later years, he was also the lead animator for Danny DeVito‘s Phil in Hercules, Louis in The Princess and the Frog and Maui’s tattoos in Moana and was one of the directors of Disney’s Pocahontas.

“Working with Robin Williams as the Genie’s voice was amazing,” Goldberg exclusively told PEOPLE. Whenever he was in front of the recording room’s mic, he said, “It all comes out 100%, and he spoiled us for choice.”

When creating Genie himself, Goldberg said that they originally imagined him “as a puff of smoke” that can “transform and do anything.”

Genie from ‘Aladdin’Credit: Disney

But then Williams surprised them by doing lots of impersonations of famous people, which, Goldberg said, “we didn’t expect when we first started recording him.”

“John Musker and Ron Clements wrote the character with archetypes like, ‘He’s an evangelist, he’s an army sergeant, he’s a game show host.’ But when Robin first recorded, out came all the celebrity impressions and we went, ‘We can’t not use this stuff. This has to be in the movie,’ ” he said.

“One thing that was great about it was talking about movement,” he said. “Okay, he’s Groucho Marx now, so he’s going to walk like Groucho Marx. Okay, he’s Ed Sullivan now, so he’s going to put his hand on his shoulder and go right here.”

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Goldberg said that the biggest challenge with the Genie “was making people believe he was sincere, that he had something to give up when Aladdin and the Genie separated at the end of the movie.” The Genie couldn’t only be a character for viewers to laugh at, but he also had to play the emotional beats of his journey with Aladdin. “Fortunately, Robin was such an amazing actor. He could do all the warm, subtle stuff as much as he could do the outrageous comedy,” Goldberg said.

Eric Goldberg (left) during the Disney Legends showcase on Aug. 16Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty

Goldberg said it meant “a lot” for him to receive the Disney Legend honor. “I’m joining people who I grew up admiring and still admire and I’m still inspired by,” he said. “So many of them have been made Disney legends. I’m very fortunate to be included in that group.”

During the event, Goldberg received his honor from Jared Bush, Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios. In honor of Goldberg’s creation of Genie, the Disneyland Band performed “Friend Like Me” from Aladdin.

The other Disney Legends honored during the ceremony were Lin-Manuel Miranda, Alan Tudyk, Imagineer Kim Irvine, The Jonas Brothers, Susan Egan, ESPN’s Chris Berman, Jerry Bruckheimer, Anne Hathaway, Dwayne Johnson and Bob Iger.

In June, Linda Larkin, who voiced Jasmine in Aladdin, reflected on Williams’ improvisations during an episode of Hey Dude… The 90s Called. “He was no limits,” Larkin, 56, said about his skills. She said it was so powerful to be “close up to one of the most incredible comedic geniuses of our lives.” She had to hold back laughter during his takes, because sometimes he only did an improvisation just the one time.

Aladdin was a major box office success, bringing in over $346 million. It was nominated for five Oscars, winning for Alan Menken‘s score and “A Whole New World.” It spawned an animated sequel series, also called Aladdin, and two direct-to-video sequels, The Return of Jafar and Aladdin and the King of Thieves.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”