He lives in you. He lives in me. He watches over. Everything we see. Into the water. Into the truth. In your reflection. He lives in you. Last year Jon Favreau’s directed Lion King remake made around 1.6 billion dollars at the worldwide box office. Numbers like that would put it on par with the first 2 Avengers movies. Being one of the biggest hits of 2019 it’s no surprise that the mouse house would want to do a sequel on the photo realistic/live action adaptation.
News dropped via Deadline that Disney has tapped Academy Award winner Barry Jenkins to direct the next entry. Some of Jenkins’ filmography includes the “Best Picture” winner Moonlight, If Beale Street Could Talk, Netflix’s Dear White People, and the upcoming film Charm City Kings. Now if you’re wondering if this will adapt the home-to-video sequel The Lion King 2: Simba’s Pride, the article mentions that this will explore the mythology of the characters, including Mufasa’s backstory. Disney plans to move the story along while looking back conjures memories of The Godfather: Part II, set on the African plain with a continuation of the tradition of music that was a key part of the 1994 animated classic, the 2019 film and the blockbuster Broadway stage transfer.
When the news was announced, Barry Jenkins mentioned his excitement for the project by saying:
“Helping my sister raise two young boys during the ’90s, I grew up with these characters,” Jenkins said. “Having the opportunity to work with Disney on expanding this magnificent tale of friendship, love and legacy while furthering my work chronicling the lives and souls of folk within the African diaspora is a dream come true.”
Other live action news from the house of the mouse was the recent casting of Tinkerbell for the upcoming Peter Pan and Wendy film by the director of Pete’s Dragon (2016), David Lowery. Freeform’s Grown-ish star Yara Shahidi was cast as the iconic sassy and hot tempered fairy.
What do you hope to see in the live-action Lion King sequel? Let us know in the comments below!
