Published 16:50 IST, January 8th 2021
Cast of 'The Lion King' 2019 : Who voices which animal in the Disney film?
The cast of The Lion King 2019 directed by Jon Favreau is star-studded. Read to know the cast of the Lion King, the characters and the actors who voiced them.
- Entertainment News
- 5 min read
The Lion King is one of Disney's most loved movies. The remake by director Jon Favreau was a huge hit. The Lion King is a photorealistic computer-animated remake of Disney's traditionally animated 1994 film of the same name. The movie boasts of stunning computer-generated visuals, live-action and very realistic looking animals. To do justice to it, Favreau assembled all-stars for The Lion King 2019 cast. The cast of The Lion King 2019 boasts of several A-listers who have been part of many hit films in the past. Here's the list of the Lion King 2019 cast and the characters they voice.
Lion King Cast
James Earl Jones as Mufasa
James Earle Jones forms an impeccable part of the cast of Lion King 2019."Remember who you are," is one of Disney's most iconic lines, as a down and defeated Simba looks up to the stars in search of his father, Mufasa. Voiced by the incomparable James Earl Jones, one can't really imagine Mufasa being played by anyone else. Interestingly, Jones is the only original cast member to reprise his role of Mufasa in Lion King. The Academy award-nominated actor is also known as the voice behind Darth Vader in Star Wars.
Donald Glover as Simba
Donald Grover voices the main character of Simba in The Lion King. The Spiderman: Homecoming actor's career continues to rise at an astonishing rate, from creating Atlanta and has turned alter-ego Childish Gambino into one of the biggest voices in music. He's also starred as Troy in Community, Miles Morales in the Ultimate Spider-Man animated series, Aaron Davis in Spider-Man: Homecoming, and played a young Lando Calrissian in Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar
Scar is one of the evilest Disney villains of all time, and also one of the best. The character of Scar is brought to life by the phenomenal actor Chiwetel Ejiofor in The Lion King 2019. Chiwetel is a British award-winning actor, best known for his performance in 12 Years A Slave, Children of Men and for essaying the role of Mordo in Doctor Strange.
Beyoncé Carter-Knowles as Nala
Beyoncé was Jon Favreau's top pick for the role of Nala, the lioness who is Simba's best friend through childhood and later becomes his love interest. Beyoncé's casting was the major talking point for The Lion King. While the role of adult Nala is not prominent, but getting Beyoncé on board for the voicing as well as to write songs for the movie adds star value to The Lion King cast. Beyoncé has won 23 Grammy Awards and is the most nominated female artist in the award's history and hence nobody can do it better than Beyonce!
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Alfre Woodard As Sarabi
Sarabi, who is Simba's mother, is voiced by Alfre Woodard, who has appeared in Star Trek: First Contact, Desperate Housewives, 12 Years a Slave (with Chiwetel Ejiofor), A Series of Unfortunate Events, and Luke Cage, among many others.
Seth Rogen as Pumbaa
Pumbaa is a lovable, hapless warthog who picks up a nearly dead Simba in the desert. He isn't very smart and likes to eat bugs, but has a heart of gold and would do anything for his friends. Pumbaa's motto is Hakuna Matata - no worries. Pumbaa is one half of a comedy duo with the meerkat Timon, voiced in The Lion King 2019 by Seth Rogen. Rogen has a long list of comedic acting and voice-over accolades to his name, including Knocked Up, Superbad, This Is The End, Sausage Party and Neighbors, and boasts of a voiceover experience in Horton Hears a Who and the Kung-Fu Panda movies. Rogen does complete justice to Pumbaa’s role.
Billy Eichner as Timon
Pumbaa is nothing without Timon and vise-versa. Timon is a wisecracking meerkat who thinks he's smart, but it's often Pumbaa who's smarter. They've been living in the jungle together for a long time before they find Simba, and both serve as surrogate parents who raise Simba to adulthood. Timon’s character is voiced by none other than Billy Eichner. Billy Eichner and Rogen have actually worked together before on Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising. Eichner also appeared in the American Horror Story anthology series and Parks and Recreation and is the host of Billy on the Street.
Supporting Cast of The Lion King 2019
John Oliver as Zazu
Zazu is voiced by John Oliver, who is best known for his news satire show, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. The royal advisor to Mufasa and then Simba, John Oliver is the perfect man to voice this character of Zazu.
John Kani as Rafiki
John Kani is a South African actor, playwright and director, well known for his stage work and as T'Chaka in Black Panther. The actor voices the character of the wise mandrill, Rafiki.
JD McCray As Young Simba
JD McCray voices the young Simba. He is 12 years old and currently stars in The Paynes on The Oprah Winfrey Network.
Shahadi Wright Joseph As Young Nala
Shahadi Wright Joseph voices Nala. She is 14 years old and best known for playing Zora Wilson/Umbrae in the Jordan Peele movie, Us.
Image Souce: Instagram (The Lion King)
Updated 16:50 IST, January 8th 2021