Blue Ivy Joins Her Mother, Beyoncé, in Cast of ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’
On April 29, Walt Disney Studios released the first official teaser for Mufasa: The Lion King. The Barry Jenkins-directed film is a prequel to the 2019 remake of the classic animated musical.
According to Disney, the movie tells the story, through flashbacks, of a young, orphaned Mufasa meeting Taka (later becoming Scar), who is in line for the throne. The two cubs become friends, and somewhere along the way, “their bonds will be tested as they work together to evade a threatening and deadly foe.”
Ahead, everything to know about Mufasa: The Lion King.
When does it come out?
Mufasa: The Lion King hits theaters on December 20, 2024.
Who is in the cast?
Beyoncé will be reprising her role as Nala, and her daughter Blue Ivy Carter, will be joining her as Kiara, the daughter of Queen Nala and King Simba, voiced by Donald Glover.
Aaron Pierre will be playing Mufasa, Kelvin Harrison Jr. is Taka, Tiffany Boone is Sarabi, Kagiso Lediga is Young Rafiki, Preston Nymon is Zazu, Mads Mikkelsen is Kiros, “a formidable lion with big plans for his pride,” Thandiwe Newton is Taka’s mother, Eshe. Lennie James is listed as Taka’s father, Obasi, Ankia Noni Rose as Mufasa’s father, Masego, John Kani as Rafiki, Seth Rogen as Pumbaa, and Bill Eichner as Timon.
According to a press release from Disney, Lin-Manuel Miranda is credited as the film’s songwriter, and is co-producing the songs alongside Mark Mancina.
“Elton John. Tim Rice. Hans Zimmer. Lebo M. Mark Mancina. Beyoncé, Labrinth, Ilya Salmanzadeh. Beau Black, Ford Riley, the incredible music team on ‘The Lion Guard,’ and so many musical contributors over the years. The Lion King has an incredible musical legacy with music from some of the greatest songwriters around, and I’m humbled and proud to be a part of it. It’s been a joy working alongside Barry Jenkins to bring Mufasa’s story to life, and we can’t wait for audiences to experience this film in theaters,” Miranda told Disney.
You read that right: Beyoncé and Blue Ivy together!
Barry Jenkins, who won the Best Picture Oscar for Moonlight, told GMA what it was like working with the mother and daughter duo. He shared, "Beyoncé is this larger-than-life figure, but when she's working with her daughter, when she's in the room with her daughter, she's a mom first. So much of that energy bled into the film. I think for them, too, they just approached it that they both wanted to perform and do the best they could. And yet, they didn't have to pretend very much because they really are mother and daughter."
If fans remember, Blue Ivy appeared on stage at least year's Renaissance tour as a dancer to the song "My Power," which was featured on Beyoncé's The Lion King-inspired visual album The Gift in 2019. Were they hinting at the movie the whole time? The director tells Entertainment Weekly, "What's crazy is we made the film, and then the Renaissance tour happened, and I think Blue really grew up over the course of that tour," he recalls. "So the Blue Ivy you see in this film, it's like a time capsule, this very, very, very young stage of her life, and she got to share it with her mom. So, I thought there was some synergy. It could be beautiful."
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