The Lion King (Live-action Remake)

The Lion King is a remake of the famous 1994 Disney film.

Walt Disney scored another big blockbuster last weekend with  The Jungle Book. Jon Favreau’s $175 million (give-or-take) “live action” remake of the 1967 Disney animated feature opened well above expectations with a $103m debut haul, good for the second-biggest live-action PG-rated movie of all time and the second biggest April debut ever. It is the latest in a swiftly growing line-up of “live action” adaptations of Disney animated classics. But this one may be something of a game-changer by showing just what is possible and available concerning future adaptations of this nature.

Alice in Wonderland  (a sequel to the 1951 animated film),  Oz: The Great and Powerful  (yes, I know  The Wizard of Oz  wasn’t a Disney film, but humor me),  Maleficent  (a prequel/reimagining to/of  Sleeping Beauty ), and  Cinderella  (a straight-up retelling of the story) were films that featured human characters as the prime attractions. But  The Jungle Book  is almost entirely populated by animal characters, dazzlingly rendered and seamlessly integrated into what is supposed to be a “live action” narrative that takes place in a wholly artificial environment. And for the record, I am aware that  The Jungle Book  is basically an animated film, but it’s being treated as a live-action movie.

With this entry in Disney’s newest sub-genre, they have now proven that they can offer the same “live-action” adaptation treatment (live action in terms of using animation to create the illusion of a flesh-and-blood, non-animated drama) to every single one of their 55 animated features if they so chose. And that means they can make a live-action adaptation of Dumbo (coming soon from Tim Burton), a live-action adaptation of  Beauty and the Beast  (coming soon from Bill Condon), a live-action take on  Winnie the Pooh  (coming soon from Alex Ross), as well as the planned adaptation of  Mulan  and the upcoming  Pete’s Dragon  and  Peter Pan  movies.

That brings us to the 1,600 lbs gorilla in the offering. They can use the technology that helped create  The Jungle Book  to craft a live-action version of  The Lion King. There is little reason why audiences who suspended their disbelief during the 105-minutes of  The Jungle Book  won’t do the same for a live-action variation on their 1994 “Bambi in Africa” blockbuster. When Disney makes the call, and it’s a matter of “when” rather than “if,” it will be a genuine box office monster.

The Lion King  was arguably the pinnacle of the Jeffrey Katzenberg/Michael Eisner  Waking Sleeping Beauty  era while also working as a bizarro metaphor for the behind-the-scenes turmoil that eventually led to Katzenberg leaving and teaming up with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen to create DreamWorks SKG. It opened with $42 million back when that was one of the biggest opening weekends ever and earned $312m domestic–the fourth movie ever to do so at that time.

Adjusted for inflation, it remains the third-biggest Disney release ever behind  Snow White,   101 Dalmatians, and  Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Oh, and it sold 32 million copies during its initial VHS run, which is still a record. Of course, you don’t need me to tell you how popular  The Lion King  remains or how big of a deal a live-action version would be. But what Favreau and friends pulled off this weekend shows that such a thing is artistically possible.

A live-action version presumably wouldn’t have the same voice-over actors (although it could), but that would be an added value element. Fans would get to see new actors play around in these iconic parts. Be it Morgan Freeman as Mufasa or Benedict Cumberbatch as Scar, these new vocals for a new version would only increase the curiosity factor. That applies to eventual Walt Disney adaptations of  The Little Mermaid,   The Fox and the Hound. Tarzan , Bambi, and finally getting  The Black Cauldron  right.

No, I don’t think they are going to spend the time or money on newfangled versions of  The Great Mouse Detective ,  Oliver and Company, or  Home on the Range , but you get the idea. This means they aren’t just limited to human-centric animated features like  Frozen  (which, and this isn’t a criticism, felt produced and staged for an eventual live-action Broadway version), but pretty much anything in the Disney animation library.

They may sound like grim news to purists, and I am not necessarily discussing the artistic wisdom of embarking on such a path. The good news is that the continuing success of these live-action Disney adaptations is as potent a carrot as anything for Walt Disney to continue to crank out high quality original (or at least non-sequel) animated features for the foreseeable future.

Just as the emerging priced-to-buy VHS market helped spur Disney to up their animated feature game in the early 1980′s, the possibility of having a never-ending franchise stream will continue to keep the Mouse House in peak form. After all, if you don’t make  Zootopia  into a modern animated classic, you can’t cash in on generational nostalgia in 25 years with a live action version.

Cast

 * Nat Wolff as Simba (voice)
 * Max Charles as Young Simba (voice)
 * Selena Gomez as Nala (voice)
 * Bailee Madison as Young Nala (voice)
 * Jason Issacs as Scar (voice)
 * Laurence Fishburne as Mufasa (voice)
 * Jennifer Lopez as Sarabi   (voice)
 * John Cleese as Zazu   (voice)
 * John Kani as Rafiki (voice)
 * Will Ferrell as Timon (voice)
 * John C. Reilly as Pumbaa (voice)
 * Meagan Good as Shenzi (voice)
 * Cheech Marin as Banzai (voice)
 * Jim Cummings as Ed (voice)

Songs

 * Circle of Life (Sung by Carmen Twilie and Lebo M)
 * Grasslands Chant (Sung by Lebo M and his South African Choir)
 * Morning Report (Sung by John Cleese, Laurence Fishburne and Max Charles)
 * The Lioness Hunt (Sung by Ensemble)
 * I Just Can't Wait To Be King (Sung by Max Charles, Bailee Madison and John Cleese)
 * Chow Down (Sung by Meagan Good, Cheech Marin and Jim Cummings)
 * They Live in You (Sung by Laurence Fishburne)
 * Be Prepared (Sung by Jason Issacs)
 * Rafiki's Mourn (Sung by John Kani and Ensemble)
 * Hakuna Matata (Sung by Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Max Charles, Nat Wolff and Ensemble)
 * One by One (Sung by Ensemble, Lebo M and his South African Choir)
 * The Madness of King Scar (Sung by Jason Issacs, John Cleese,  Selena Gomez, Meagan Good, Cheech Marin and Jim Cummings)
 * Shadowland (Sung by  Selena Gomez, John Kani and Ensemble)
 * Endless Night (Sung by Nat Wolff)
 * Can You Feel The Love Tonight (Sung by Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, Nat Wolff and Selena Gomez)
 * He Lives in You (Reprise) (Sung by John Kani, Nat Wolff  and Ensemble)
 * Luau Song (Sung by Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly)

Rating
Rated PG.

Trivia

 * In the movie the characters are animals.
 * The movie will be directed by Jon Favreau, Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff
 * The movie will be produced by Don Hahn, Jon Favreau and Brigham Taylo
 * The movie will be screenplay by Justin Marks, Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts and Linda Woolverton
 * The movie will be music by Hans Zimmer and John Debney
 * The movie will be  Cinematography by Bill Pope
 * The movie will be edited by Mark Livolsi and Ivan Bilancio
 * The movie will be Production company by Walt Disney Pictures and Fairview Entertainment
 * The movie will be Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
 * The movie running time will be 238 minutes