In this crazy society of recycled animated cash-grabs, The Lion King‘s looking to be a strong addition. With that said, almost every single piece of marketing material we’ve gotten indicates a nearly identical, copy-and-paste production. But hey, at least it’s not Dumbo. And if you have to duplicate any film, the 1994 Academy Award winner’s not a bad one to choose.
The latest TV spot for the upcoming remake continues on with the tradition of its predecessors, but with a special little twist. For the first time, we’re given a look (or rather, a listen) at the star-studded cast singing together.
Boldly beginning with Donald Glover (Simba) and Beyonce’s (Nala) rendition of “Can You Feel The Love Tonight,” you can check out the spot for yourself above.
Back in 1994, this song earned Elton John his first and only Oscar. And hearing it sung from the incredibly talented voices of Beyonce and Glover is truly magical. In fact, this is the most excited I’ve gotten for the the film.
But it’s also looking like I may’ve been too harsh too early in my “copy-and-paste” deduction. Director Jon Favreau’s said that his movie will “surprise” us, and after viewing an early cut, Seth Rogen, who’ll be playing Pumba, was reportedly reduced to tears.
As of right now, there’s hardly anything indicating that the latest remake won’t be another major success for Disney. Early predictions state that the pic will earn upwards of $180-230 million its opening weekend. And if Queen Bee and Childish Gambino continue to string their vocal cords together like they did in the video above, you can guarantee my ticket. But we’ll have to wait and see for ourselves once The Lion King roars into theaters July 19th.
