“The Lion King”: Reimagining Is Coming

Love it or hate it, The Lion King has been an enduring piece of Disney magic since it’s release in 1994.  To continue with their current idea of “lets remake every single classic film”, Simba and company are the next on the list.

The Walt Disney Company announced last night that Jon Favreau will be helming the film, putting it on the “fast track” for production.  Favreau recently garnered a soft hit for the House of Mouse with his take on The Jungle Book.  It was also announced that Disney and Favreau are in development for a sequel to The Jungle Book.

Excited for my next project ??

— Jon Favreau (@Jon_Favreau) September 28, 2016

Disney goes on to say the remake will have some of the original songs from the animated version.

This “remake” “reimagining” everything started with Maleficent starring Angelina Jolie, followed with Kenneth Branagh’s Cinderella, then Favreau’s Jungle Book, and will continue with Beauty and the Beast due out in 2017, as well as Mary Poppins set for sometime in the 2019 realm.

I honestly don’t know how I feel about this announcement, it’s becoming less and less of a shock with each new retelling.  Do we think Favreau can improve on a film as beloved as this?  I would argue that more people know and love The Lion King than the Jungle Book, but that can also be chalked up to the Broadway production.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Jon as an actor and director, but I’m getting real tired of filmmakers running out of good ideas without revisiting their children’s Disney Vault collections.  And why continue on the animated titles?  Why not go for the Pollyanna, Something Wicked This Way Comes, type of remakes?  Oh, right, because Pete’s Dragon was TERRIBLE.

No release date has been announced at this time for The Jungle Book sequel or the Lion King project.  We’ll keep you updated as more news becomes available.