While it won’t ever be the mane event, it will be close.

The new Lion King Movie is set to release on July 19, 2019.  

What a cast!

Here are five things to look forward in the upcoming movie. 

• Beyonce. Need I say more? The Grammy winning star will play lioness Nala, Simba’s childhood friend.  Are you wondering what Beyonce will be singing? Well, there will only be four songs from the original movie: “Can you Feel the Love Tonight”, “Hakuna Matata”, “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King”, and “Circle of LIfe”.  I’m sure Beyonce’s voice will be highlighted with a few more.  

• James Earl Jones – Is coming back! To reprise his role as Mufasa. He’s an icon with maybe one of the most  memorable voices on the planet. 

• Jon Favreau – After his success with The Jungle Book, Jon Favreau is contributing his talents to reimagine Simba’s rise to power. One of his main goals: Honoring the original movie. He never wants to ruin the memory of someone’s favorite movie. 

• Elton John – Did you know that Elton John’s middle name is Hercules???? John famously won an award for the Original Lion King Soundtrack and he is back behind the scenes of the music for the new remake. Looks as if he was destined to work with the magic of Disney.

• 2019 – It’s 2019. The original Lion King was made in 1994 (I was 14 years old!!). We have new technology, new capabilities. I’m sure amazing things will be done with the live action animation. You can have a love for both films, I promise. Who here is going to the movies in July??