The upcoming film “Mufasa: The Lion King” is a highly anticipated prequel that tells the story of how Mufasa and Taka, who becomes known as Scar in the future, met and became brothers. The film is framed around Rafiki, Timon and Pumbaa telling this new story to Simba and Nala’s daughter Kiara. Since Nala is voiced by Beyoncé, it makes sense that they would cast her actual daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, in the role. At the recent D23 Expo fan event, director Barry Jenkins revealed a few details about Blue Ivy’s performance.
“Blue Ivy doesn’t sing in the movie. She is a thespian! I gotta be honest about that. She is a thespian,” Jenkins told Entertainment Weekly.
While the young actress doesn’t sing, everyone else does. For this new entry into the universe, Disney turned to frequent collaborator Lin-Manuel Miranda to do the music. As acclaimed as Jenkins is, this is his first musical, so working with Tony and Grammy winner Miranda was a confidence booster.
“For me, working with Lin was amazing,” Jenkins said. “I’ve never made a musical before. So when I took the job, I knew that was going to be a part of it, but I just figured, ‘We’ll figure that out when we figure that out.’ In a musical, we need to figure that out first!”
At D23 Expo, we got a sneak peek of the song, “I Always Wanted a Brother,” which features the two lions. Taka seems very devoted to Mufasa and really wants him to join the family, so it will be interesting to see how their relationship changes into what we’ve seen for years.
In addition to her very famous mother, Blue Ivy joins a cast that includes returning stars Donald Glover as Simba; John Kani as Rafiki; Billy Eichner as Timon; Seth Rogen as Pumbaa, as well as Aaron Pierre as Mufasa and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Taka.
Disney has used its live-action remakes to create more relatable stories for its villains. It appears that may be where “Mufasa” is headed, but anyone who watched the wildebeest stampede when they were kids will never forgive Scar. Plus, the character is one of Disney’s most fascinating villains, so let’s hope the new movie doesn’t change their dynamic too much.
“Mufasa: The Lion King” storms into theaters Dec. 20.