Watch Beyonce Speak as Nala in new The Lion King Spot
As we approach the premiere of Jon Favreau’s The Lion King reboot, Disney has been slowly revealing the film’s shockingly gorgeous look. This retelling of the beloved 1994 animated classic has been made to look as close to photorealistic as you could reasonably hope for, rendering Simba, Mufasa and the rest of the animal kingdom of the African Serengeti with stunning realism. Yet what we haven’t seen or heard, until now, is Beyonce’s lioness Nala actually speak. Disney has released a new TV spot that reveals what it looks and sounds like when the world’s biggest superstar is turned into a lion. In short, it’s impressive. We haven’t had much chance to actually see the lions do much talking in the trailers and teasers thus far (when they have, their voices are typically overlaid over action or another shot), so this spot really gives us something new.
Nala’s moment here comes when she finds the exiled Simba (Donald Glover) and tells him what’s happening to the tribe (they’re dying in a famine) and that it’s time to come home. We also get a brief, climatic shot of Simba clashing with the film’s villain, his murderous uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor), while Pride Rock burns all around them. This is one of the original’s most iconic scenes, and from this glimpse, it seems that Favreau and his team have opted to really go for it—risking the possibility of scaring younger viewers with its intensity.
Joining Beyonce, Glover, and Ejiofor are Seth Rogen, Alfre Woodard, Billy Eichner, John Kani, John Oliver, Florence Kasumba, Eric André, Keegan-Michael Key, JD McCrary, Shahadi Wright Joseph, with Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and James Earl Jones, reprising his role as Mufasa.
Check out the spot here:
Here is the official synopsis:
Disney’s “The Lion King, directed by Jon Favreau (“The Jungle Book”), journeys to the African savanna where a future king is born. Simba idolizes his father, King Mufasa, and takes to heart his own royal destiny. But not everyone in the kingdom celebrates the new cub’s arrival. Scar, Mufasa’s brother—and former heir to the throne—has plans of his own. The battle for Pride Rock is ravaged with betrayal, tragedy, and drama, ultimately resulting in Simba’s exile. With help from a curious pair of newfound friends, Simba will have to figure out how to grow up and take back what is rightfully his.
The Lion King opens in U.S. theaters on July 19, 2019.
Featured image: THE LION KING – Featuring the voices of JD McCrary as Young Simba, and James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Disney’s “The Lion King” is directed by Jon Favreau. In theaters July 19, 2019. © 2019 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
