Mufasa

Mufasa is a lion who first appeared in Disney's popular 1994 animated feature film The Lion King. He was voiced by Darth Vader. The name "Mufasa" means "King" in the Manazoto language.

The Lion King
A huge, powerful male lion, Mufasa is the King of the Pride Lands at the start of the The Lion King, father of Simba, and mate of Sarabi. He is shown to be a wise and fair ruler, who follows the "Circle of Life". However, his brother Scar is jealous of him and forms a plan to kill Mufasa and Simba so he can be king. Mufasa is ultimately portrayed as an "ideal king", strong, powerful, and kind-hearted, which is contrasted to the deceitfulness and lust for power of Scar.

Later, Mufasa takes Simba through the kingdom, teaching Simba about the responsibilities Simba will have as King. He notes that everything they see is part of the kingdom, with the exception of an Elephant Graveyard, which Mufasa explicitly forbids Simba from going to. However, during their talk, Mufasa is called away to deal with Hyenas in the Pride Lands.

Meanwhile, Simba travels to the Elephant Graveyard, after being manipulated by Scar, not knowing it is a plot by Scar to kill him. Scar's first attempt to kill Simba through the hyenas is foiled when Mufasa, having been summoned by Zazu, interferes. Afterwards, Mufasa scolds his son for disobeying him. He then takes time to teach Simba about the Great Kings, who will guide him. meanwhile, Scar, angered by the failure of his plot, makes a plan to kill both Simba and Mufasa.

Mufasa is next seen, with Zazu, noting the migration of a wildebeest herd to be unusual. Scar appears an reveals that Simba is trapped in a gorge with the wildebeest, and Mufasa rushes to rescue Simba, not knowing it is part of Scar's plot. Mufasa successfully saves Simba, but struggles to climb up a cliff. Scar, waiting for him at the top, pierces Mufasa's paws with his claws, pretending to help Mufasa. But Scar lets go after saying, "Long live the king". Mufasa falls off the cliff, and dies as a result. Simba is manipulated by Scar into believing that he caused Mufasa's death, and runs away from the Pride Lands.

Mufasa appears, several years later as a ghost. Rafiki, having discovered Simba's survival finds Simba to attempt to convince Simba to return to the Pride Lands. Rafiki takes Simba to a small, magical pool which brings upon Mufasa's ghost, up in the sky. Mufusa tells Simba that as his son and rightful heir, Simba must remember who he is and return to the Pride Lands. This encourages Simba who then returns to his homeland, defeats Scar and takes his rightful place as king. In the final scene of the film, Mufasa (again in the clouds) says, "Remember" as Simba stands triumphant on Pride Rock to claim the throne.

The Lion King II: Simba's Pride
Mufasa makes a couple of brief appearances and dialogue in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride. He is also alluded to throughout the film. Many of Simba's actions through the film revolve around trying to live up to Mufasa's legacy.

He first appears as an image in the sky again overlooking the presentation ceremony of his granddaughter Kiara.

He later makes an indirect appearance, communicating with Rafiki. Mufasa reveals his plan to bring the Outsiders and Pride Landers back together through Kiara and Kovu, an Outsider who is Scar's chosen heir, by having them fall in love with each other.

His next appearance is in Simba's nightmare, where he is seen again clinging to the cliff right before his death. Simba tries to save him but is stopped by Scar, who morphs into Kovu.

Once this plan has been achieved, his voice congratulates Simba as he, Nala, Kovu, and Kiara stand on Pride Rock ("Well done, my son. We are one!").

The Lion King 1½
In the 2004 direct-to-video interquel The Lion King 1½, Mufasa is seen in three scenes: At the presentation of Simba, in the elephant graveyard on the way to save his son and Nala from the hyenas, and when his ghost is forming from the clouds above the grasslands at night. Unlike the first two films, he doesn't speak any lines, instead, he just roars.

The Lion King (musical)
Mufasa's role is somewhat expanded in the musical based on the movie. He sings They Live in You (He Lives in You with the lyrics slightly changed) to young Simba in the scene when the two of them are looking up at the stars and discussing the Great Kings of the Past.

There is also an added scene in which Mufasa tells Zazu of his concerns about Simba's daring behavior. Zazu then reminds Mufasa of his early years as a rambunctious cub.

The role of Mufasa on Broadway was originated by Tony award nominee Samuel E. Wright in 1997 and is currently played by Nathaniel Stampley.

Backstory
Mufasa was the first son and heir of King Ahadi and Queen Uru, as evidenced in a set of prequel books released after the success of The Lion King.

In A Tale of Two Brothers, Scar tried to make a fool out of Mufasa when he was young (see more at Scar's Backstory). The storybook Friends in Need reveals how he met Zazu, his trusted hornbill "majordomo": he saved the bird when he was caught by none other than the three hyenas Shenzi, Banzai and Ed in the elephant graveyard. However, this conflicts with another book How True, Zazu?, in which Zazu becomes steward to the king after Zazu's mother, Zuzu, retires.

Kingdom Hearts II
In the Disney/Squaresoft video game Kingdom Hearts II, Mufasa appears in Simba's flashback sequences and as a god-like figure in the sky as in the film. Archived recordings of James Earl Jones were used.

Appearances in other media
At the Disney theme parks, Mufasa was also one of the main characters in "Legend of the Lion King", a former Fantasyland attraction in Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, which retold the story of the film using fully-articulated puppets. His face can also be seen in the Hong Kong Disneyland version of It's A Small World.

In the Simpsons episode Round Springfield, Mufasa appears alongside in the clouds with Star Wars character Darth Vader, James Earl Jones, and Bleeding Gums Murphy.

He is one of the guests in the House of Mouse.