Disney has dropped a teaser for Mufasa: The Lion King, a prequel for the studio’s 2019 photorealistic version of the animated 1994 classic The Lion King.
Directed by Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins (Moonlight), the film sees the baboon Rafiki to relay the legend of Mufasa to his granddaughter Kiara. According to the trailer description, the story will be told in flashbacks and follows Mufasa (meaning ‘king’ in Swahili) as an orphaned cub, lost and alone until he meets a sympathetic lion named Taka—the heir to a royal bloodline.
Aaron Pierre will voice the titular Mufasa. Kelvin Harrison Jr., Mads Mikkelsen, and Thandiwe Newton will also voice key characters. In an addition, Blue Ivy Carter will voice Kiara, while real-life mother Beyoncé will return to play her onscreen mother Nala. Tiffany Boone will voice Sarabi. Other returning voice cast members from the 2019 The Lion King include Donald Glover as Simba, and Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner as Timon and Pumbaa.
Lin-Manuel Miranda will compose the film’s original soundtrack. Blending live-action filmmaking techniques with photoreal computer-generated imagery, Mufasa: The Lion King is produced by Adele Romanski and Mark Ceryak, and executive-produced by Peter Tobyansen.
The film is being released December 20, 2024.
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