Disney has kicked off the casting on its upcoming remake of The Lion King, with director Jon Favreau (The Jungle Book) revealing on Twitter that Donald Glover is set to lend his voice to Simba, while James Earl Jones will reprise the role of Mufasa from the original 1994 animated classic.
I just can’t wait to be king. #Simba pic.twitter.com/wUYKixMBJI
— Jon Favreau (@Jon_Favreau) February 18, 2017
Looking forward to working with this legend. #Mufasa pic.twitter.com/1LszbWrcYT
— Jon Favreau (@Jon_Favreau) February 18, 2017
The Lion King marks another high profile role for Glover, who is currently shooting Lucasfilm’s as-yet-untitled Han Solo Star Wars spinoff, where he is portraying Lando Calrissian. And of course Jones is a Star Wars veteran, having voiced Darth Vader in the Saga, a role he reprised for December’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
The Lion King is being scripted by regular Steven Spielberg collaborator Jeff Nathanson (Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). It is currently without a release date, but Favreau intends on shooting it back-to-back with The Jungle Book 2.
Originally published February 18, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
