Mufasa Teases Motion, Journey, and Toothy Grins

Mufasa‘s title suggests it’s a prequel, going again in time to discover what Simba’s father obtained as much as earlier than guiding his younger son in The Lion King. And naturally that would be the bulk of it—however Barry Jenkins‘ photo-realistic CGI animated musical additionally has a body story, set throughout Simba’s royal rule, during which the ageing Rafiki tells Mufasa’s story to Simba’s younger daughter, Kiara. (That’s how Disney made certain fan-favorites Timon and Pumbaa would have locations within the solid.) As Mufasa‘s launch inches towards the “one month to go” mark, Disney is ramping up the promo with a brand new featurette and a few colourful character posters.

First up, we get a peek inside Jenkins’ artistic course of with “Mufasa: The Lion King—Visionary Storyteller,” which exhibits the Oscar-winning director arduous at work on his follow-up to Disney’s 2019 blockbuster The Lion King, itself a re-do of the studio’s beloved 1994 animated traditional. “Oh my lord, how lucky Disney is,” says Rafiki actor John Kani, talking about Jenkins’ expertise, and we are inclined to agree.

It’s a sentiment shared by everybody on this video, from star Aaron Pierre to songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda, and past. (It’s mutual, as an excited Jenkins calls his co-workers “the solid of my goals.”) Plus, there’s all types of sweeping footage of animals (some friendlier than others) working and leaping throughout attractive landscapes. Test it out!

Disney additionally shared some new posters that you must count on to start out seeing plastered round quickly. Clockwise from high left, that’s Rafiki and Zazu; younger Mufasa; the lion brothers Mufasa and Taka (who later turned referred to as Scar); Kiara; and Timon and Pumbaa.

Mufasa: The Lion King boasts a stacked solid—together with a number of performers which are reprising their roles from Jon Favreau’s The Lion King. Aaron Pierre (who was simply solid in DC’s Lanterns sequence) stars as Mufasa, with Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Taka, John Kani (Black Panther‘s T’Chaka) as Rafiki, Seth Rogen as Pumbaa, Billy Eichner as Timon, Tiffany Boone as Sarabi, Donald Glover as Simba, Mads Mikkelson as Kiros, Thandiwe Newton as Eshe, Lennie James as Obasi, Blue Ivy Carter as Kiara, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter as Nala, Preston Nyman as Zazu, Anika Noni Rose (The Princess and the Frog) as Afia, and Keith David as Masego.

Mufasa: The Lion King hits theaters December 20.

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