People divided by Lion King prequel that follows Mufasa's rise to becoming king

Following the announcement of a prequel to The Lion King, people have been left divided after hearing how the storyline will follow Mufasa's rise to be king.

Originally announced in 2020 as a sequel to the 2019 remake of the 1994 Disney classic, Mufasa: The Lion King is set to tell the origin story of Mufasa and his childhood growing up alongside his brother - and more notably, one of Disney's most iconic villains - Scar.

An official synopsis reads: "Simba, having become king of the Pride Lands, is determined for his cub follow in his footsteps while the origins of his late father Mufasa are explored."

Mufasa: The Lion King. 2024. pic.twitter.com/IkPMk6IDGR

— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) September 9, 2022

As reported by Variety, the younger versions of Mufasa and Scar will be voiced by Aaron Pierre (Mufasa) and Kelvin Harrison Jr. (scar), filling in for James Earl Jones as Mufasa in both the 1994 original and the 2019 remake, and Jeremy Irons and Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar.

It will be a CGI remake with a similar aesthetic to the 2019 Jon Favreau film.

At the recent D23 Expo, director and Oscar-winner Barry Jenkins gave a little bit more insight into the production and explained how the film will be told in two time periods.

One will be in the past as a young Mufasa will be seen growing into a lion king, and the other will be in the present, where Rafiki, Timon and Pumbaa will tell Mufasa’s story to a young cub. 

According to Gizmodo, Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner will be reprising their roles as Pumbaa and Timon.

“It’s a story about how Mufasa rose to royalty,” Jenkins said of his upcoming film.

“We assume he was just born into his lineage, but Mufasa was actually an orphaned cub who had to navigate the world alone. In telling this story, we get to experience the real journey of how Mufasa found his place in the circle of life.”

While the film isn't expected to be released until 2024, Disney fans have already been quick to share their excitement following the official announcement yesterday (9 September), with one fan taking to Twitter to write: "I'm interested in this as The Lion King remains my favourite Disney movie after all these decades, if they want to do more with this world I won't complain!"

While another simply said: "Omgg I'm so happy, can't wait!"

However, others aren't as impressed and have been slammed the production for 'exhausting' movie ideas.

"Proof that all the ideas for movies and entertainment have already been exhausted. @diamondtvzambia, ideas are not easy to come by please, give us a break," one person wrote as another said: "No one needs prequels for a trash remake."

Someone else said: "Why are they making another movie out of this reboot s**t. First one was emotionless, can tell this will be too."

Some even criticised the timing of the announcement following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, with one pointing out: "The Queen just died and you’re posting this."

Mufasa: The Lion King is expected to premiere in theatres in 2024.