New The Lion King poster showcases cute animals, arresting visuals

While Disney is indeed on shaky ground with their upcoming ALADDIN movie after debuting the first look at the blue, pointy-eared Will Smith as Genie, a new poster for the upcoming remake of THE LION KING proves there’s no wrong way to market CGI animals. Disney dropped the poster after the TV spot for the movie aired during the Oscars, but while that showed off nothing new the poster released shortly after recalls the striking imagery of the original, as well as the abundant sweetness. Seriously, it’s a lion cub against the backdrop of a blaring, red/orange/yellow sky. How is this movie not going to make a billion dollars?

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This is the second major poster for the movie after the first one featuring an even bigger image of the young Simba was put front and center, his small paw stepping into the massive step of his father Mufasa (James Earl Jones). While there may be plenty more posters and images to come, I imagine it will be hard for the marketing team to top themselves here.

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Listed at the top are members of the all-star voice cast, including Donald Glover (adult Simba), Beyoncé Knowles-Carter (adult Nala), Seth Rogen (Pumbaa), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Scar), Billy Eichner (Timon), John Kani (Rafiki), Alfre Woodard (Sarabi) and John Oliver (Zazu). Alongside them are more notable names, including Eric Andre, Keegan-Michael Key and Florence Kasumba as the three hyena henchman working for Scar.

Directed by Jon Favreau (IRON MAN), the movie promises to take even further the Oscar-winning visual effects utilized on his other Disney remake, THE JUNGLE BOOK. Without a single human character in the cast, the entire movie will be filled with photorealistic, CGI animals doing everything from singing to fighting. THE LION KING remains the highest-grossing non-digitally animated movie of all time, and it has scores of fans around the world who have high expectations for this new version. The trailer promises an adaptation that sticks (very) closely with the original, but Favreau said back in 2017 his approach was all about giving fans what they want while also offering some surprises. 

It’s about the audience having the experience they’re hoping they have, and if you can surprise them along the way, they’ll enjoy it even more, but you gotta live up to what they want, so you get greater pressure with these beloved stories.

THE LION KING is in theaters July 19.