This article is about the 2024 photorealistic sequel/prequel film. For the 1998 animated sequel, see The Lion King II: Simba's Pride.
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''What wouldst thou know, my Queen?''
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- “The story of an orphan who would be king.”
- ―Tagline
Mufasa: The Lion King is a photorealistic CGI-animated film produced by Walt Disney Pictures. It is a prequel and sequel to the 2019 adaptation of the 1994 film The Lion King. It was released in theaters on December 20, 2024.
A prequel film about the rise of one of the greatest kings of the Pride Lands, goes back to the African savanna where Rafiki tells Kiara—daughter of Simba and Nala—the story of her grandfather while Timon and Pumbaa add color commentary.[1]
Synopsis[]
Exploring the unlikely rise of the beloved king of the Pride Lands, "Mufasa: The Lion King" enlists Rafiki to relay the legend of Mufasa to young lion cub Kiara, daughter of Simba and Nala, with Timon and Pumbaa lending their signature schtick. Told in flashbacks, the story introduces Mufasa as an orphaned cub, lost and alone until he meets a sympathetic lion named Taka—the heir to a royal bloodline. The chance meeting sets in motion an expansive journey of an extraordinary group of misfits searching for their destiny—their bonds will be tested as they work together to evade a threatening and deadly foe.[2]
Plot[]
- Spoilers start here.
After the events of the first film, Simba and Nala have a female cub named Kiara and are expecting their second cub. They leave to visit an oasis where Nala will give birth, while Simba leaves Timon and Pumbaa to watch over Kiara. Rafiki soon visits them and, after telling Kiara about when Simba was her age, decides to share the story about the youth of her grandfather Mufasa and his treacherous brother Scar, with Timon and Pumbaa commenting on the story in between.
Long ago, Mufasa is born to a small family of lions consisting of himself and his parents, Masego and Afia, who preach about a mythical land called Milele. A flood strikes, and Mufasa's fear stops him from joining Afia; he is swept away to a far away land where he meets a royal cub named Taka, who saves him from crocodiles and Taka's mother Queen Eshe intervenes to save them. Eshe accepts Mufasa as her son, but Taka's father, King Obasi, grounds Taka for welcoming an outsider. Mufasa claims that he could be of service to his pride and races with Taka to prove his speed. Mufasa lingers back due to exhaustion, but Taka concedes defeat in order for Mufasa to be welcomed into the pride, much to Obasi's reluctance.
As Mufasa and Taka grow up, they form a strong brotherly bond. While Eshe teaches Mufasa how to hunt, the land is assaulted by two white lions who attack Mufasa and Eshe, but Mufasa kills one and forces the other to flee. Taka sees the attack, but retreats in fear, earning him the ire of his father. The survivor reports back to King Kiros, the leader of a white lion pride called the Outsiders and the father of the lion Mufasa killed; Kiros and his sisters, Akua and Amara, swear vengeance. The Outsiders kill Obasi, Eshe and their clan and chase Mufasa and Taka, who escape while one Outsider is eaten by a crocodile.
As Mufasa and Taka reach land, they encounter a stray lioness named Sarabi, her hornbill friend Zazu and a younger Rafiki, who was exiled by his fellow monkeys and baboons for being different. Rafiki tells them that he is on his way to Milele to find a new home, and the group proceeds to follow him there. Taka begins to grow romantic feelings for Sarabi, but before he can confess them to her, the Outsiders pursue them. Sarabi uses bees to stampede a herd of passing elephants to distract the Outsider, allowing the group to escape. She falls off and gets injured, forcing Mufasa to save her, but he claims to a recovering Sarabi that it was Taka who saved her.
The brothers and their group hide out in snowy mountains. Sarabi tells Mufasa that she knew he saved her, and they soon fall in love. Secretly watching this, a jealous Taka meets with Kiros and his pride, offering a proposition for Kiros to get revenge on Mufasa for his son's death. The next day, the group reaches Milele, a lush oasis, with Taka secretly leaving marks for the Outsiders to follow.
Rafiki dubs Mufasa as his brother as the Outsiders come to attack. Mufasa learns of Taka's betrayal while fighting Kiros. Despite this, Mufasa rallies the animals in the land to fight off the white lions. Kiros forces Mufasa into a cave. Seeing his brother exhausted, a remorseful Taka intervenes, and as he struggles against Kiros, the evil lion swipes his paw over Taka's eye, leaving a scar. Rafiki causes a cave-in, resulting in the cave flooding. Akua and Amara are killed in the collapse when they try to kill Sarabi and the last lions alive. Undeterred, Kiros attempts to drown Mufasa, but a falling rock strikes and kills Kiros as Mufasa swims away to safety. Taka is tempted to drown his brother but instead helps him get out of the water.
The flood recedes, and Mufasa and Sarabi exit the cave together as the animals celebrate their victory, with Rafiki dubbing the couple as King and Queen. Mufasa is soon reunited with Afia, who tells him that Masego died in the past flood. Mufasa confronts Taka about his betrayal, showing forgiveness, but as a consequence, he vows only to refer to Taka as 'Scar'. Mufasa then goes up to the newly formed Pride Rock and roars triumphantly.
Back in the present, Kiara roars atop Pride Rock as the spirit of her grandfather looms over her. She and her friends soon reunite with Simba to meet her new younger brother.
- Spoilers end here.
Cast[]
- Aaron Pierre as Mufasa
- Braelyn Rankins as Young Mufasa
- James Earl Jones as Mufasa (archive recording)
- Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Taka
- Theo Somolu as Young Taka
- Tiffany Boone as Sarabi
- Kagiso Lediga as Young Rafiki
- John Kani as Rafiki
- Preston Nyman as Zazu
- Mads Mikkelsen as Kiros
- Thandiwe Newton as Eshe
- Lennie James as Obasi
- Anika Noni Rose as Afia
- Keith David as Masego
- Seth Rogen as Pumbaa
- Billy Eichner as Timon
- Donald Glover as Simba
- Blue Ivy-Carter as Kiara
- Folake Olowofoyeku as Amara
- Joanna Jones as Akua
- Thuso Mbedu as Junia
- Sheila Atim as Ajarry
- Abdul Salis as Chigaru
- Derrick L. McMillon as Mosi
- Maestro Harrell as Inaki
- A.J. Beckles as Azibo
- David S. Lee as Mobo
- Dominique Jennings as Sarafina
- Lin-Manuel Miranda as Enaki (Uncredited)
- Beyoncé as Nala
Production[]
On September 29, 2020, it was announced via Deadline, that a follow-up was in development for the realistic CGI animated remake of The Lion King. Jeff Nathanson, who wrote the remake, was confirmed to return as writer, while Barry Jenkins will replace Jon Favreau as the film's director. The film's story will expand on the mythology of the franchise and explore Mufasa's origin story while moving the story forward in the present, in a structure similar to that of The Godfather Part II.[3]
On May 8, 2021, it was announced that the working title of the film was Wonderwall.[4] It was also announced that production for the film would officially begin in Los Angeles on September 6, 2021.[4]
On September 15, 2022, The Hollywood Reporter reported that film would be released on July 5, 2024.[5]
On November 9, 2023, The Hollywood Reporter reported that film had pushed back its release date from July 5, 2024 to December 20, 2024.[6]
On April 29, 2024, it was reported that Lin-Manuel Miranda had been hired to write original music for the film.[7]
Reception[]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 57% of 152 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "Barry Jenkins' deft hand and Lin-Manuel Miranda's music go some way towards squaring the Circle of Life in Mufasa, but this fitfully soulful story is ill-served by its impersonal, photorealistic animation style." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 56 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.
Videos[]
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Blue Ivy-Carter, who plays Kiara, is the real life daughter of Beyoncé, who plays Nala.
- The majority of this film is a prequel to the 2019 version rather than being adapted from The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, the 1998 direct-to-video sequel to the original film, from what can be inferred from a Deadline article source.
- This is the first time that Kiara appears on the big screen.
- Tiffany Boone, who plays Sarabi, previously appeared as Young Ursula, in an episode of ABC's Once Upon a Time.
- This is the third sequel to a Disney live-action adaptation of an animated film after Maleficent: Mistress of Evil and 102 Dalmatians.
- Mufasa: The Lion King is both Barry Jenkins' first musical film and first entirely animated film.
- The film reunites Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., and Lennie James who previously portrayed Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., and Martin Luther King Sr. in the fourth season of National Geographic's Genius on Disney+.
- The film also reunites Anika Noni Rose and Keith David who previously voiced Tiana and Dr. Facilier in 2009's The Princess and the Frog.
- This is Keith David's fourth time being involved in The Lion King franchise. He previously voiced Mr. Pig in an episode of Timon & Pumbaa, and then voiced Mufasa himself in the video game The Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure, and the House of Mouse animated series.
- Anika Noni Rose also previously starred in the animated series Amphibia.
- As part of events to celebrate release of movie, Mufasa was added as playable character in Disney Heroes: Battle Mode in December 2024. This also marked first time where Mufasa was actively playable character which can be controlled by a player, as other times he was NPC.
- This film is dedicated to Mufasa's original voice actor, James Earl Jones, who died on September 9, 2024. His voice was briefly heard during the opening titles saying, "Look at the stars. Whenever you feel alone, the Great Kings of the Past will always be up there to guide you. And so will I..."
References[]
- ↑ "Mufasa Project Profile".
- ↑ "Mufasa The Lion King Project Profile 2".
- ↑ Fleming Jr., Mike (September 29, 2020). "'The Lion King' Follow-Up Set With 'Moonlight' Director Barry Jenkins To Helm For Walt Disney Studios". Deadline.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Shuler, Skyler (May 8, 2021). "'The Lion King' Sequel to Feature Multiple New Characters". The DisInsider.
- ↑ Couch, Aaron; McClintock, Pamela (September 15, 2022). "Disney Pushes 'Haunted Mansion' to Summer 2023, Removes 'Star Wars' Movie 'Rogue Squadron' From Calendar". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ↑ McClintock, Pamela; Couch, Aaron (November 9, 2023). "'Deadpool 3', 'Captain America 4' Among Marvel Release Dates Shifts as Strike Ends". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ↑ The Hollywood Reporter on twitter
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