Will MUFASA: THE LION KING really be Disney’s THE GODFATHER PART II? Everything We Know About The Make or Break Sequel So Far!

We’ll all be talking about MUFASA: THE LION KING at this time next year – one way or another, for better or worse. Why? Well, let’s back it up a little. I’m a Disney fan and I write a lot about Disney stuff. And even I’ll admit 2023 was a down year for Disney as a studio – and frankly as a company. Sure Disney’s “down” year (finishing 2nd behind only Universal in box-office for all Hollywood studios) would be a GREAT year for any other studio – a point that countless X accounts and Youtube channels have already made. But there is an expectation that when you are Disney you are leading pop culture trends and film box office. And this year that didn’t happen. The company led in neither. There’s also an expectation that the large budgets of most Disney films will earn appropriately larger at the box-office. That hasn’t happened either. In fact, inflated Disney budgets have become a nagging issue for films that would have otherwise been classified as hits (ELEMENTAL – which I loved) but for their budgets. And it seems like almost every Disney film is a $200M plus production meaning, after factoring in marketing, each will have to make over $700M just to break even. But again, this is something that countless X accounts and Youtube channels have already covered.

And frankly, I don’t want to be negative. Because I think Disney is set up for a turnaround this year – for a variety of reasons. First, there’s just the cyclical nature of the news cycle. After years of Disney ruling the box-office, the world began to tire of Disney’s dominance in the early aughts after the pandemic. Political issues further ignited some backlash against Disney (again X accounts and Youtube channels have covered this ad nauseam) and that combined with the general audience fatigue may have exacerbated the downward trajectory.

But with 2022 and 2023’s lack of Disney’s hits and 2024’s lack of Disney releases, why would I be hopeful. Three words: THE. LION. KING. That’s right, the King returns in 2024 with MUFASA: THE LION KING, a prequel/sequel to Jon Favreau’s 2019’s live-action THE LION KING. And I think it has the potential to be the first HUGE blockbuster since pre-2020 days for Disney. While each Disney release this year appears to be something that could dominate the box-office: KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, INSIDE OUT 2, DEADPOOL 3, and MUFASA: THE LION KING – only the latter feels poised to me to be the right film at the right time. It’s a film that shouldn’t work, that some say couldn’t work – but it is always those kinds of films that, when they DO WORK, end up working the best and creating a true cultural reset. And that’s the kind of thing that I think MUFASA is capable of. Could it flop also – sure. But no Disney release in 2024 has a higher ceiling.

MUFASA has the potential to be a huge Disney film (remember it is the sequel to the 1.663 BILLION DOLLAR grossing LION KING) that can play and play and play throughout the Holiday season and set up for an awards run. The film’s structure and tone has also been compared to THE GODFATHER PART II – could it possibly be a player in next year’s Oscar season? Maybe. These are the things that make it such an interesting and important release for the Disney company. So what are all the reasons that make this sequel so interesting, when its predecessor (although a huge box office hit) was met with a lukewarm critical and cultural reception?

1. Barry Jenkins

Barry Jenkins is undeniably the #1 reason why I am personally optimistic for this film. Jenkins directed the Oscar-winning best-picture MOONLIGHT (2016) and critically well-loved IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK (2018) as well as running the Emmy-nominated series THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD. Jenkins is the last person I would think would want to direct a sequel to Jon Favreau’s live-action LION KING. Although the film was a smash hit – and I loved it – plenty of critics didn’t and honestly, I feel like people constantly rail on the film online.

And I never would have guessed that Jenkins would have been interested in a sequel to live-action THE LION KING. But the fact that he did sign up for the film makes me think he is passionate about the property, a property that has meant a lot to many people, especially African-Americans. And it also made me confident that he has a personal point of view for the film. In an interview at D23 in 2022 with Entertainment Weekly and available on Youtube, Jenkins said that he has watched the film multiple times and watched the original film on VHS “fourteen or fifteen” times when he was helping his sister raise her children. At the time, the film really struck a chord with him.

And in his role as a master director, Barry Jenkins has already brought masterful talent to MUFASA while combining it with the existing talent from the preceding feature (more on that in a second). Jenkins enlisted red-hot actor Kelvin Harrison Jr. in the presumed pivotal role of Scar. Harrison Jr. has already starred in acclaimed roles in CYRANO, ELVIS, TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7 and CHEVALIER. He has also signed Aaron Pierre as Mufasa. Pierre began as a an actor specializing in Shakespeare on the London stage that went on to star in Jenkins’ television series THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD as well as the anticipated upcoming film REBEL RIDGE from director Jeremy Saulnier (BLUE RUIN and GREEN ROOM). Pierre is also presumed to be a part of Marvel’s upcoming BLADE reboot.

Speaking of the MCU, Disney, and especially Marvel, has a track record for making superior sequels from their inferior progenitors: CAPTAIN AMERICA: WINTER SOLDIER, THOR; RAGNAROK. Fox has also done this with the LOGAN sequels and the PLANET OF THE APES sequels, Paramount has done this with the MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE sequels, Universal with the BOUNE sequels, and Warner Bros. with the HARRY POTTER sequels. The common denominator is always a good director, whether it is James Mangold, Matt Reeves, Paul Greengrass, or Alfonso Cuaron. And I’m not talking about the recent spate of MCU directors that have made a decent but little seen indie film. Barry Jenkins directed a Best Picture winner. And yeah, ok, so did Chloe Zhao who went on to direct ETERNALS (which I actually liked). But that was not a sequel. The basic template of a franchise combined with a prestige director is the recipe for a potential way to reignite a franchise. And that is exactly what we have here for THE LION KING franchise.

2. An Original Story (but THE GODFATHER PART II comparisons – really)?

MUFASA is a sequel that is also a prequel. This has prompted GODFATHER II comparisons in structure, story and tone that have mushroomed over time. That comparison originated in a September 29, 2020 article in DEADLINE wherein Mike Fleming Jr. wrote about how insiders compared the story to GODFATHER II. Now how exactly it is like GODFATHER II is still a mystery – with a few exceptions. In the aforementioned interview with D23, Jenkins mentioned that the film will explore “how people become great and become these mythic figures that we look up to.” And he did confirm that the film will take place in the past – as well as the present.

That’s right, the film will supposedly take place both before (I should say largely before) the events of THE LION KING – as well as after THE LION KING. The  frame story structure (allegedly – and this has not been confirmed by Jenkins) will see a sequel-set story featuring Timon, Pumba, and Rafiki telling Kira (Nala and Simba’s daughter), the prequel-set story of Mufasa and Scar. This will allow the film to flash back and forth in time.

But when you name-drop THE GODFATHER PART II, there are more expectations than just structure, right? Are these unreasonable expectations? Probably. But I do think that expecting a BETTER film than the original, much like THE GODFATHER PART II is considered superior, is not an unreasonable expectation. Jenkins said that the film will feature baroque emotions but presented for kids – and in a new and unexpected story. He linked the experience to seeing the 1995 LION KING as opposed to the 2019 LION KING, where audiences already knew the story – but which was also a factor in bringing them to the theater. That comparison though gave me enough to hope that MUFASA will far exceed 2019’s THE LION KING and in fact feel more like a prequel to 1995’s THE LION KING – in which case, perhaps THE GODFATHER PART II is more of an apt comparison. MUFASA can feel like something that is fresh and deserved and justified – things that many critics and audiences did not feel were quite there in the 2019 live-action THE LION KING.

3. Rafiki, Pumba and Timon are returning

As mentioned above, Rafiki, Pumba and Timon are all returning. Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner’s return has been confirmed. Whether you loved or hated 2019’s THE LION KING, many audience members really loved Rogen and Eichner as Pumbaa and Timon. Overall, I think this is a good thing. While it may sound cynical, it is also a way to sell the movies and stoke audience familiarity, while also potentially promising something new.

4. Hans Zimmer and Pharell Williams are Returning To Write New Songs

While Nicholas Britell has been confirmed as the film’s score composer, the film has already been confirmed as a musical and accordingly will need songs. And for that, Disney and Jenkins have already hired Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams (the former worked on both versions of THE LION KING and the latter worked on the 2019 LION KING). Zimmer can bring in elements of the legacy score through new songs. While Pharrell Williams can give us something new, just like the film itself. Sure we won’t have Elton John but that’s ok, this is a new story and we can have sounds that might hint toward the story of THE LION KING and the Elton John songs that we already know so well.

5. No News is Good News After The Hollywood Strikes

One positive byproduct of the Hollywood Strikes is that it gave Disney a (forced) chance to check out the storytelling mechanics in all of their upcoming films and TV projects and make adjustments. While big adjustments (rebooting DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN) and small adjustments (DEADPOOL 2) have been reported, there have been no such reports for MUFASA: THE LION KING. I assume more post-production time will also ultimately only help MUFASA. And the only real effect the strikes had on the film was pushing it back six months. This was presumably not due to post-production delays but rather general calendar shuffling, which saw multiple films moving back and MUFASA taking its place among those – moving from July 2024 to December 2024.

6. A Holiday Release

With that new Holiday 2024 release date, MUFASA is now primed for a potential huge box-office haul. Much like the unexpected WONKA this year, and to a greater extent the much analyzed AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER last year, the holiday is a time to ring up massive box-office for solid family films. Even a solid if unremarkable film like PUSS N’ BOOTS: THE LAST WISH did well last holiday season. And at its very least, I can see MUFASA garnering the kind of solid reviews that WONKA and AVATAR earned. If it does, it can do VERY well considering audience familiarity and being the kind of film that families might want to watch in the holiday period. Now this is not a slam dunk for Disney by any means. Remember many people (including me) thought that WISH was going to be a massive hit this holiday season, but it failed to achieve that critical seal of approval and never earned the audience one either. But ultimately, MUFASA’s well placed Holiday release date can only help its final box-office tally.

In conclusion, what do you all think about MUFASA? Are you excited? Do you agree with my optimism? If you do, consider hitting the like button. If not, leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.

I’m really excited for MUFASA: THE LION KING. Love them or hate them, these Disney live-action spectaculars really fueled Disney box-office over the last decade with hits like BEAUTY AND THE BEAST and THE JUNGLE BOOK and of course 2019’s THE LION KING. But with Barry Jenkins’ involvement, I think that this will feel more like a prequel/sequel to the original 1995 LION KING that will feel fresh and deserved with a real purpose.