'Mufasa' stars 'pinching themselves' to be in 'Lion King' prequel

Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Tiffany Boone voice the lead lions in "Mufasa: The Lion King," in theaters December 20.
Friday, December 13, 2024 3:45PM PT
ESCONDIDO, CA -- The stars of "Mufasa: The Lion King": Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Tiffany Boone opened up to On The Red Carpet about playing the three lead lions in the upcoming Disney adventure.

Pierre voices the title character, Mufasa, the father of Simba who was first introduced in the original 'Lion King' movie in 1994. Harrison Jr. plays his adoptive brother Taka who fans know better as the villain, Scar. And Boone plays Sarabi, a female lion who attracts the attention of the two males, putting their brotherly bond to the test.

The new film opening in theaters December 20, isn't the first time Pierre and Harrison Jr. have worked together. The pair also portrayed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X in Nat Geo's "Genius: MLK/X." Harrison Jr. jokingly calls Pierre his "big brother" because they're "months apart." But! Pierre quickly clarified their birthdays are only a month apart.

Boone revealed to On The Red Carpet what if feels like to see her character on screen as an animal singing, "Strange. Yes, when I finally saw it or even when we would see some of the sketches come to life it was like 'this is really, really strange' especially how intense the technology is. It's so life-like."

Speaking of "intense," Pierre opened up about starring in a highly anticipated film hitting theaters before the holidays, "I'm very nervous but you know I'm really hopeful that people will connect with this and it resonates with people whether they choose to see it on their own or with their loved ones, I just hope people leave feeling inspired and feeling joyous!"



Boone shared similar sentiments about voicing Sarabi. "It's an amazing opportunity to be in this cast of actors, to be working with (Lin-Manuel Miranda), to be working with (director) Barry (Jenkins). It's one of those moments where you have to pinch yourself and be like, 'oh, ok you are in this amazing opportunity, what are you gonna do with it and hopefully be present in it."

Pierre says he's pinching himself too.

"I still can't quite believe that this is a reality," He said. "So, I'm still pinching myself and I'm happy to be pinching myself with other people who are pinching themselves about this movie."

"Mufasa: The Lion King" will be in theaters on December 20.

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