It’s been 25 years since viewers first fell in love with lion royalty Simba and learned about the Circle of Life from Disney’s iconic animated musical, “The Lion King.” Now, Disney’s hoping to rekindle that spark with the release of its remake of the classic movie on Friday.

Directed by Jon Favreau, this new version of “The Lion King” uses the same photorealistic computer-generated animation as Favreau’s 2016 film, “The Jungle Book.” So, while this remake isn’t technically a live-action movie, it is a visually-updated, more realistic animation than the original. Aside from the animation getting an update, the voice cast is new, as well.

Donald Glover, who currently stars on “Atlanta” and previously worked on fan-favorite series “Community,” voices the lead character of Simba, while singer and pop culture icon Beyoncé, who’s acted in movies like “Obsessed” and “Cadillac Records,” voices the character of Nala. Their younger counterparts will be voiced by JD McCrary (“The Paynes”) and Shahadi Wright Joseph (“Us”), respectively.

lion king 2019 cast remake
Disney’s new “The Lion King” remake. Disney

Check out the rest of the original characters viewers will see in the 2019 remake of “The Lion King,” along with who will be voicing them this time around:

  • Timon (Billy Eichner, “Difficult People”)
  • Pumbaa (Seth Rogen, “Neighbors”)
  • Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor, “12 Years a Slave”)
  • Mufasa (James Earl Jones, “Star Wars” franchise)
  • Rafiki (John Kani, “Black Panther”)
  • Zazu (John Oliver, “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”)
  • Sarabi (Alfre Woodard, “Luke Cake”)
  • Azizi (Eric André, “Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23”)
  • Shenzi (Florence Kasumba, “Black Panther”)
  • Kamari (Keegan-Michael Key, “Key and Peele”)
  • Bush Baby (rapper and singer Chance the Rapper, “Slice”)
  • Guinea Fowl (Amy Sedaris, “At Home with Amy Sedaris”)

Check out “The Lion King” when it roars into theaters on Friday.

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