Disney’s live-action remake of “The Lion King” has found its Rafiki in “Captain America: Civil War” actor John Kani.
TheWrap has learned exclusively that Kani, who played Black Panther’s father, King T’Chaka, in “Civil War,” will voice the baboon who serves as the royal adviser to Mufasa and his family in the Pride Lands.
Last week, TheWrap exclusively reported that Chiwetel Ejiofor is in talks to voice the villanous Scar in the remake. Donald Glover already stars as lion cub Simba, James Earl Jones as his father Mufasa and John Oliver as Zazu.
The original “Lion King” is one of the biggest animated films of all time: It grossed $968.8 million globally and won an Academy Award for the original song, “Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” as well as its original score by Hans Zimmer.
It finished its theatrical release as the highest-grossing release of 1994 and second highest-grossing of all time. It has also spawned a Broadway adaptation and two direct-to-video follow-ups.
Earlier this month at Disney’s D23 presentation, Jon Favreau, who is directing the new film, surprised fans with a first glimpse at how the famous “Circle of Life” opening from the original “Lion King” would look in his new version. The brief clip featured photo-realistic CGI animals similar to those in Favreau’s remake of “The Jungle Book,” which earned an Oscar for Best Visual Effects. The clip ended with the iconic image of Rafiki presenting the newborn Simba to the animals of the Pridelands.
