A dozen things we learned about Toronto actor Mena Massoud, Disney’s new Aladdin, from his Instagram

Toronto actor Mena Massoud just landed the coveted title role in Guy Ritchie’s adaptation of Aladdin, alongside Will Smith as the Genie. It’s a major break for the Egypt-born Ryerson grad, whose biggest role to date is co-starring in the upcoming Amazon series Jack Ryan with John Krasinski. Here, a dozen interesting facts we learned about the soon-to-be-super-famous actor.

1. He’s vegan. He’s been known to hit up vegan joints like Doomie’s in Parkdale, and he loves to cook. He regularly whips up interesting recipes like vegan Snickers bites or this sprouted bean salad:

2. He loves posting shirtless gym selfies. This one was snapped after two weeks of “intermittent fasting”:

3. He’s obsessed with inspirational captions. Like this poetry excerpt, this ode to an amazing week and this New Year’s sentiment. That’s his ex-girlfriend in the photo with him:

4. He has a man crush on Jake Gyllenhaal:

5. He’s unlikely to get swept up in Hollywood’s superficiality. At least if this video is any indication:

6. He goes to Rooster Coffee on King East. He’s also a regular Dark Horse customer:

7. He has an incredibly cute niece:

8. Just last year, he was making ends meet by serving at El Catrin:

9. His hobbies include horseback riding:

10. He can rock a man bun. And he understands that said bun—combined with fancy coffee, moody stare and philosophical caption—is Instagram gold:

11. He was a total fanboy. Just a few years ago, he was stopping celebs like Bryan Cranston on the street for blurry photos:

12. He lives part-time in L.A. He made the move earlier this year and appears to be adapting well to the lifestyle, though he’s clearly a Toronto boy at heart: