‘The Lion King’ Is Getting A Prequel And It’s All About Mufasa

Anyone with a heart knows that King Mufasa’s death in the original film The Lion King was one of the deepest emotional cuts in all of cinema. His end comes close to the beginning of the film, and viewers are hurried on to the coming of age story of Mufasa’s son, Simba. But, what was Mufasa’s story? How did he become king?

Disney is about to tell it all!

Disney has just announced the release date for Mufasa: The Lion King, the CGI prequel to the 2019 remake The Lion King. The upcoming film will be released in theaters on July 5, 2024.

Revealed during the Disney and Pixar panel at D23, Barry Jenkins, who will be taking over for Jon Favreau as director, will be in charge. It appears that Billy Eichner will reprise his role as the voice of Timon. Seth Rogen will be back as Pumbaa. John Kani, who voiced Rafiki in the 2019 film, will also return. Variety has reported that Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. will voice younger versions of Mufasa and Scar.

The prequel story will follow Mufasa and Taka, his brother (who all movie viewers know as Scar), as it explores their relationship and Mufasa’s journey to be king.

The origin story will be told in two timeframes by Rafiki, Timon, and Pumbaa, as they relay the stories to Simba, now king, who wants to know more about his dad.

In the short preview footage shown to D23 audiences, viewers got a glimpse at how the story of Mufasa: The Lion King will unfold. The teaser opens up on Pride Rock with the familiar voice of Rafiki narrating. “In this place, a lion was born without a drop of nobility in his blood. The lion who would change our lives forever,” he regales.

As the scene flies over Pride Rock, a young lion cub sees rain coming. A few drops build into a downpour and a flood comes and sweeps the little lion cub away. He survives the flood and is found by another mysterious lion. Then we cut back to Rafiki, Timon, and Pumbaa. Timon makes a quick joke, “Wait, wait, wait, am I not in this story? I don’t feel seen.”

While the small snippet of video didn’t give much away, there are a few key takeaways to keep fans interested. First, a massive flood orphaned Mufasa, and second, Scar is not his brother by birth. It seems like the mysterious lion that took Mufasa in must bring him into the pride to raise him alongside Scar, who is heir to the throne by birthright.

With a new director, some familiar voices, and a brand new origin story to reveal, it looks like Disney fans have a lot to look forward to this summer.