Disney Brings Award-Winning Barry Jenkins
on Board for 'Mufasa'
Filmmakers are visual storytellers who can bring a film to life with the right cast, editing, writing, music, and cinematography. It takes the right creative vision to enthrall audiences, so selecting a director with the chops to bring a masterpiece to the big screen is key. And Disney made the right choice with Academy Award-winner Barry Jenkins at the helm of its next musical drama film, Mufasa: The Lion King.
Jenkins is known for his storytelling prowess and immersive cinematography. The filmmaker directed Moonlight (2016), a coming-of-age, LGBT-themed story based on the unpublished play, In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, by Tarell Alvin McCraney. Moonlight would win Best Picture at the 89th Academy Awards, earning Jenkins his first Oscar.
In 2018, I had the pleasure of meeting Jenkins while he was in Houston on a press tour to promote his third directorial feature, If Beale Street Could Talk. The film was nominated for several awards, including a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award win for Regina King, who played Sharon Rivers in the film.
Barry Jenkins and Jacquari Harris at the ‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ press tour in Houston.
Jenkins’ unique narrative style, along with his visual impact through cinematography, makes him one of the most influential movie directors of our time. So it’s no surprise that he brings his talent to Disney’s Mufasa, the prequel to the 2019 remake of the Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff-directed 1994 animated film The Lion King.
In the new film, Simba wants his cub to follow his journey as a lion, which means revisiting the history of his late father Mufasa. The trailer for Mufasa was released on April 29, with Donald Glover (Simba), Beyoncé Knowles-Carter (Nala), Seth Rogan (Pumbaa), and Billy Eichner (Timon) all reprising their characters in the film.
New cast members include Aaron Pierre (Mufasa), Kelvin Harrison Jr. (Scar), Tiffany Boone (Sarabi), and Beyoncé’s daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, who will be making her feature film debut as Kiara. The mother-daughter duo made headlines last year when the two performed the song “My Power” during Beyoncé’s highly successful Renaissance World Tour.
Mufasa:The Lion King will be released on Dec. 20, 2024.
Watch the Mufasa trailer below:
