Mufasa: The Lion King ★★

Released: 20 December 2024

Director: Barry Jenkins

Starring: Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Tiffany Boone, Mads Mikkelsen, Blue Ivy Carter, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Kani and Thandiwe Newton

Are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them? Much like 2024’s thematically similar musical hit Wicked, Mufasa: The Lion King continues the trend of re-framing classic villains’ origins, exploring just how they came to be. This prequel to Jon Favreau’s 2019 “live-action” remake of the iconic 1994 hit The Lion King is certainly a step up from it’s predecessor – particularly when it comes to the added emotion of it’s photorealistic lions – but it certainly feels like another needless instalment from the House of Mouse. The CEO of Disney definitely wasn’t exaggerating when he said the studio would start relying more on “sequels and franchises” earlier this year.

Directed by the award-winning Barry Jenkins (Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk), Mufasa: The Lion King centres on how a lowly orphaned cub Mufasa (Braelyn Rankins) is rescued by young heir Taka (Theo Somolu) and reluctantly taken into his pride, against the wishes of Taka’s father Obasi (Lennie James). Fast forward a few years and the pair become brothers, with Taka’s mother Eshe (Thandiwe Newton) taking Mufasa under her wing. However, the arrival of a dangerous albino pride known as The Outsiders (led by Mads Mikkelsen’s villainous Kiros) puts their very lives in danger.

Despite the lavishly rendered Savannah landscapes and some neat nods to the wider universe (hello, Kiara!), this disappointing instalment feels like it was destined for Disney+ or, if it was released in the 90s, direct-to-video! Initially unravelling via a sweet generational storytelling device courtesy of Rafiki (John Kani), it doesn’t take long before events unfortunately diverge from the established lore of the original films (and book series) – and in some cases, significantly. Long gone is the fact that Simba comes from a line of established kings, aka the great Kings of the past, as it’s quickly revealed that Mufasa is not of royal-blood – rather Taka/Scar is.

While the question mark over how Taka gained his cruel nickname is the most intriguing element of the film, (and disappointingly, most contrived – with a paper thin villainous turn) the prequel feels the need to explain the origins of not just Mufasa and Taka/Scar’s dynamic, but also bizarrely Rafiki’s favourite stick and Pride Rock’s literal geological formation. To make matters worse, the annoying Timon (Billy Eichner) and Pumbaa (Seth Rogen) often halt proceedings with irritating skits reminiscent of The Lion King 1½, detracting from the main narrative. Still, it’s nice to get nods to the underrated The Lion King 2 and also spinoff TV show, The Lion Guard.

It’s not all doom and gloom though, as the House of Mouse appeared to have listened to fans’ backlash over the lack of emotions in their CGI photorealistic protagonists, with much more expression and added anthropomorphism in comparison to their 2019 counterparts. However, the addition of tight close-ups to character’s faces does begin to feel repetitive, and there’s one action sequence with a certain YouTube-esque shot which amusingly resembles a GoPro being strapped to a lion cub.

The highly anticipated collection of new Lin-Manuel Miranda songs also feel overly familiar and forgettable – despite bops – with similar riffs and compositions to Disney hit Encanto and Moana, missing the power of Elton John and Tim Rice’s iconic soundtrack. Still, Mads Mikkelsen singing ‘Bye Bye’ is a real treat, along with the interweaving of motifs from the ever soulful Lebo M and the call backs to Hans Zimmer’s wondrous score. 

Despite earnest found family themes and visually beautiful animation, prequel Mufasa feels like an unnecessary instalment which disappointingly conflicts with the wider Lion King mythos.