A prequel story to 2019’s Disney live-action movie, The Lion King, is upon us. The movie tells us the story of Mufasa, Simba’s father, and his journey to become the king of the jungle. Mufasa: The Lion King will be helmed by director Barry Jenkins of Moonlight fame, unlike Jon Favreau, who directed the 2019 feature, with Donald Glover and Beyoncé returning to voice Simba and Nala, respectively.
For the Oscar winner, this Walt Disney production was quite different from the kind of movies he usually makes. And if not for Jeff Nathanson’s script, which had him hooked from the beginning, Jenkins could have almost said no to the project.
Barry Jenkins Almost Said No To Mufasa: The Lion King
Mufasa: The Lion King will have music from Nicholas Britell with Hans Zimmer and Williams returning after The Lion King. Lin-Manual Miranda will write the original songs for the movie and director Barry Jenkins is pretty excited to share this with the Hamilton star, whom he once wanted to cast for his movie If Beale Street Could Talk.
Jenkins says that he was initially hesitant to take on the movie because of it being a musical. The idea that music comes first and the story comes second was not something he wanted to work with. Speaking of finding that balance and how Miranda was a help in reaching that point, Jenkins told Empire:
“We wanted to really find a balance of symbiosis between the music and the film. Lin really leaned in and tried to find the places that myself and Jeff Nathanson, the writer of the script, had tried to go deeper into the background of some of these characters in this film. He did a really, really wonderful job, and he and I already had something of a rapport.”
The 2019 movie had an amazing soundtrack, with some really great vocals adding to the tunes, whether new or nostalgic. We are sure, the upcoming feature will have the same effect.
Fans Will Miss The Original Mufasa
While Glover and Beyonce are returning to voice Simba and Nala, one person, whose voice will be tremendously missed, is that of James Earl Jones. Jones voiced Mufasa in the animated Disney productions, as well as in the Jon Favreau-directed live-action, The Lion King. Unfortunately, the incredible actor will not be returning to voice the protagonist of the story.
The task of voicing the young Mufasa has fallen on the shoulders of the English actor, Aaron Pierre. Pierre has previously worked with Jenkins in The Underground Railroad (2021) and is teaming up with the director once more to join the Disney family, to voice such an iconic character. While it is an almost impossible task to match up to James Earl Jones, we wish Pierre the best as he makes this character his own.
Mufasa: The Lion King in theatres on December 20, 2024.
