Mufasa: The Lion King Trailer Roars!

The first trailer for Mufasa: The Lion King roars to life! The prequel to the CGI remake of the 1994 Disney classic will leap into cinemas on December 20.

“‘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.“

So, Mufasa was an orphan. I see Disney is going for a plot that may justify Scar’s dislike of his “brother.”

The move to make Simba’s father someone who just happened into royalty sort of devalues the greatness of Mufasa. Sure, the story probably shows him growing into an exceptional leader who is revered throughout the land, but it smells like another Chosen One storyline.

I would much rather learn about Scar, his fall from grace, and how he became the leader of the hyenas. OK, let me qualify this a bit. Scar would again need to be voiced by Jeremy Irons in order to gain my money. There’s no substitute for his line delivery.

Mufasa: The Lion King is also continuing Disney’s trend of making their animal movies as photorealistic as possible. While visually impressive, the CGI creatures lack the facial complexity to pull off the wide range of emotions we see in the animated masterpiece.

Sadly, James Earl Jones won’t be retuning to the role, even with de-aged AI voice tech being available. The King will now be played by Aaron Pierre.