Following the immense box office success of the recent photorealistic remake of the beloved animated movie, The Lion King, Disney has announced a prequel that will focus on Simba's father, Mufasa, and his rise to becoming the titular king of the Pride Lands.
At the recent D23 expo, Disney announced that Mufasa: The Lion King will be released at some point in 2024, two years from now. However, they didn't reveal an exact release date. At least, that was the case, until now. Disney has now revealed that Mufasa: The Lion King, the prequel to 2019's The Lion King, will debut on July 5th, 2024 (via ComingSoon.net).
Given the aforementioned financial success of 2019's The Lion King, we can only assume that Mufasa: The Lion King will also debut in theatres. However, that much isn't known for certain at this time which means there's a chance it could release via Disney's streaming service, Disney+.
While Jon Favreau directed the 2019 pseudo-live-action remake of The Lion King, Barry Jenkins will serve the role for the Mufasa movie. Jenkins is best-known for directing the 2016 Academy Award-winner in the "Best Picture" category, Moonlight.
Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. will serve as the voices of the titular lion and his brother, Scar, respectively. The D23 expo showed some footage from the film to those in attendance; apparently, a scene depicting Rafiki telling the story of how Mufasa became the king of Pride Rock to a group of cubs. John Kani will reprise the role of Rafiki in Mufasa: The Lion King.