‘Moonlight’ Director Barry Jenkins Set To Helm ‘The Lion King’ Prequel

Barry Jenkins shared details of a pending The Lion King prequel, including the trailer for the film, last week during Cinemacon. According to Variety, the filmmaker revealed Mufasa: The Lion King to theater owners at the annual convention in Las Vegas.

Although the clip is not publicly available, the outlet describes the preview as “majestic footage,” adding that it features “stunningly realistic” animals, including “a young Mufasa” who “is seen leaping over rhinos and all kinds of jungle creatures.”

The film, due in theaters on Dec. 20, is set to preface the 2019 photorealistic version of The Lion King, rather than the 1994 cartoon. Notably, Beyoncé created the visual album, The Lion King: The Gift, for the film. Jenkins has neither confirmed nor denied Bey’s potential involvement with the new project, however, he did reveal that the film will feature new music.

“They are handcuffing me,” joked the 44-year-old, according to the outlet. “I can’t tell you who made those new songs, but they are absolutely amazing.”

“You are probably wondering… what is the director of Moonlight doing talking to me about an eight-quadrant tentpole legacy IP massive film?” he also explained to the audience in jest. “And I gotta say, the thought was very strange to me at first, as well. But oh my god. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my life, and I’m so glad I made this picture.”

Mufasa: The Lion King is described by Variety as expected to focus on the early years of Mufasa before he reigned over Pride Rock, as well as the story of his eventual villainous brother, Scar. The film will feature the voices of Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as the younger version of the two jungle cat siblings.

Last year, Pierre and Harrison Jr. starred as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. respectively in the Genius: MLK/X limited series.

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