The Lion King / Media Alert
The highly anticipated live action adaptation of Disney’s classic, “The Lion King”, roars into cinemas in the UAE, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and KSA on the 18th July 2019 and in Egypt on 17th July 2019.
Directed by Jon Favreau, “The Lion King” journeys to the African savanna where a future king is born. Simba idolizes his father, King Mufasa, and takes to heart his own royal destiny. But not everyone in the kingdom celebrates the new cub’s arrival. The battle for Pride Rock is ravaged with betrayal, tragedy and drama, ultimately resulting in Simba’s exile. With help from a curious pair of newfound friends, Simba will have to figure out how to grow up and take back what is rightfully his.
Kindly find information regarding the movie, cast and characters and fun facts; and links to download key images, below:
Assets download links:
Movie stills: https://we.tl/t-VmrSt6P0AU
Poster: https://we.tl/t-q3Eubdkp0N
Advanced Production Notes – available upon request
Trailer
- YouTube Trailer
Facebook Trailer
Film Synopsis
- Genre: Action-Adventure
UAE, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and KSA Release Date: 18th July 2019
Egypt Release Date: 17th July 2019
Voice Cast: Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Alfre Woodard, Billy Eichner, John Kani, John Oliver, Florence Kasumba, Eric André, Keegan-Michael Key, JD McCrary, Shahadi Wright Joseph, with Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and James Earl Jones.
Directed by: Jon Favreau
Screenplay byJeff Nathanson
Produced by Jon Favreau, Jeffrey Silver and Karen Gilchrist
Executive Producers: Tom C. Peitzman, Thomas Schumacher & Jim Shamoon
Score by Hans Zimmer
Music & Lyrics by Tim Rice and Elton John
The Journey of The Lion King:
Widely considered an animated masterpiece, beloved by fans worldwide, Disney’s 1994’s classic “The Lion King” won Academy Awards® for the original song “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” (Elton John, Tim Rice) and original score (Hans Zimmer). In 1997, the stage production inspired by the film made its Broadway debut, subsequently winning six Tony Awards®; 22 years later, it remains one of Broadway’s biggest hits, recently marking its 9,000thshow.
Favreau helmed 2016’s “The Jungle Book,” utilizing technology to tell the story in a contemporary and immersive way. The film wowed audiences and won an Oscar® for best visual effects (Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones, Dan Lemmon), and the experience was eye-opening for the director, revealing a new world of possibility. But it was a trip to Africa that pointed him in the direction of “The Lion King.”
“I went on safari to Africa six months prior to first talking to Disney about doing this film,” says Favreau. “I remember when a warthog ran by our safari vehicle, one of the people in our group started singing ‘Hakuna Matata.’ And then when we saw lions up on a rock, they all said, ‘Oh, look, it looks like Lion King.’ This story has become a frame of reference that everybody now knows and accepts. It pops up in music, on TV shows, in comedy routines, as part of sketches. It’s such a deep part of our culture that it felt like there was a tremendous opportunity to build on that and to retell the story in a different medium.”
According to the director, the performances breathe life and humanity into the story. “The casting allows for interpretation while maintaining the spirit and personality of the classic characters,” he says. The all-star lineup includes stars from film, TV, theater and music, bringing back to the big screen iconic characters that audiences have long treasured—but in a whole new way.
Hans Zimmer (“Dunkirk,” “Hidden Figures”), who won an Oscar for his score for the animated classic, also scored the 2019 adventure. Utilizing pioneering virtual filmmaking techniques to bring some of film’s most treasured characters to life in a whole new way.
Meet the cast of “The Lion King”
SIMBA (voice of Donald Glover)SIMBAis destined to be a mighty king from the moment he’s born. As an over-confident cub who can’t wait to be king, Simba learns from his father, Mufasa, and mother, Sarabi, to respect the Circle of Life.
NALA (voice of Beyoncé Knowles-Carter) NALA befriends Simba as a young cub. Playful, competitive and equally matched, they are deemed a pair long before the idea ever occurs to them. Nala, a strong and self-assured cub, grows into a powerful lioness who’s concerned about the future of the Pride Lands.
TIMON (voice of Billy Eichner)TIMONis a wisecracking meerkat who discovers a downtrodden Simba after he flees Pride Rock in search of a different life. Timon and his buddy Pumbaa take in the lonely cub and teach him how to survive in their habitat.Timon’s no fool, having a lion in your corner can’t be a bad thing—even if he is destined for greatness.
PUMBAA (voice of Seth Rogen)PUMBAA is a perpetually gassy warthog and best friend to meerkat Timon. Following his buddy’s lead, Pumbaa befriends young Simba—just as soon as it’s established that the little lion isn’t planning to eat them. Pumbaa, whose name means “silly” in Swahili, has a big heart and a sensitive soul.
MUFASA (voice of James Earl Jones)MUFASA is the intelligent and capable king of Pride Rock and father to Simba. A kind and loving partner to Sarabi, Mufasa is always up for some fun with his cub. He’s driven to teach Simba everything he knows in hopes that his son will one day lead the Pride Lands with compassion and integrity. An ardent believer in the Circle of Life, Mufasa knows he won’t be around forever. His devotion to his family and kingdom knows no bounds.
SCAR (voice of Chiwetel Ejiofor)SCAR is the overlooked and undervalued brother to King Mufasa. He has long believed that he is the rightful ruler of the Pride Lands—if only his painfully noble brother would just step aside. When Simba is born, Scar’s dreams fall further from his reach, so the unhappy uncle hatches a plan to dispose of both Mufasa and the new cub with help from his hyena minions.
The Production’s Story
Disney’s “The Lion King, directed by Jon Favreau, journeys to the African savanna where a future king is born. But before the script was final, before the cast was fully assembled and before the digital sets could be designed, filmmakers committed to doing their homework to ensure the authenticity and believability of the creatures and habitats that would ultimately be created for the film.
The team was invited to Disney’s Animal Kingdom to study the stars of their film—the lions, hyenas and warthogs, among others—up close, in an effort to capture their true behavior and mannerisms.
Filmmakers partnered with the animal science department at Disney’s Animal Kingdom (DAK) in Orlando, Fla., to set up a nonintrusive camera system to record about 75 percent of the animals that would be featured in the film. They also recorded the resident lions and other animals at DAK to infuse the film with authentic vocalizations. The sound crew traveled to Germany’s Magdeburg Zoo to record the audio of lion cubs in an effort to capture baby Simba’s plot-shifting roar.
To experience the world of “The Lion King” and its wild inhabitants, filmmakers needed to trek to the world’s second largest continent—home to Kenya and a throng of animal-dense habitats. 13 key members of Favreau’s team embarked on a two-week safari to scout throughout Kenya, to observe first-hand the natural environment and animals of the Pride Lands, the primary location of “The Lion King.”
Throughout the trip, the team observed every species of animal that was featured in the original film, visited the entire region from North to South, stayed in five lodgings, used three different helicopters and six Safari Land Cruisers. It took more than 2,200 pounds of camera equipment to capture a whopping 12.3 TB of photographs.
Masai Mara, Kenya, which is part of Serengeti National Park, inspired the Pride Lands. Filmmakers photographed iconic grasslands and acacia trees, as well as the ever-changing skies. Animals include lions, leopards, cheetah, wildebeest, cape buffalo, zebra and antelope. Chyulu Hills, Kenya, is a mountain range is located in southeast Kenya that features grassland and montane forest. The rock formations found here inspired Pride Rock in the film.
The tufas in Mono Lake, California, provided extraordinary reference for the elephant graveyard in the story. Sesriem Canyon in Namibia provided the perfect inspiration for the film’s dramatic scene where Simba practices his roar. The narrow canyon is more than a half mile long and up to 100 feet deep.The Sossusvlei in Namibia’s Namib Desert and its spectacular sand dunes served as reference for the area that Simba finds himself in after leaving the Pride Lands.
The Aberdares’ waterfalls, including Karuru Waterfall—the tallest in Kenya—provided reference for Nala’s return to Simba’s life.
According to visual effects supervisor Rob Legato, the experience transcended the needs for the film. “There’s something spiritual about being in Africa,” he says. “There’s something about the collective of nature, how it balances, how one creature behaves and how the other animal either eats that thing or creates something that allows the ecology of the place to run. We realized there’s a grand design somewhere. You cannot walk away from a trip like this without some spiritual feeling about the cradle of all life.”
