Disney Set To Remake 'The Lion King' In Live Action With Jon Favreau At The Helm

Alright so upon reading the title of this article you're probably pretty confused. How can they make a live action version of Lion King when every character in it is an animal? And why would Disney even remake a classic like the Lion King? To be honest with you, I actually have no idea about that second question. But in regards to the first question, following the success of this year's Jungle Book live action remake, the studio has apparently decided to use that same CGI style and same director (Iron Man's Jon Favreau) to readapt one of their most famous animated movies. Now whether we need this movie to be made or not is up for debate, but it seems Disney wasn't as hesitant as most fans are.

Disney came out to announce the project along with Favreau's name being attached to direct it. The studio also announced that thanks to the financial success and critical acclaim of Jungle Book, they will be developing a sequel to that film with Favreau also directing. It seems Disney has grown very fond of Jon Favreau, and he's found a niche directing their live action adaptions. The visual effects used to create the realistic animal in Jungle Book has also been a huge success, which is what encouraged the studio to retell the Lion King story with that same technology.

Unlike Jungle Book, the original Lion King is one of the most recent films on Disney's list of animated classics. Several of the actors who voiced characters in that film are still working today, and would most likely be willing to return if given the opportunity. While fans would love to see James Earl Jones return as Mufasa, Nathan Lane back as Timon, or Jeremy Irons as Scar, its likely Favreau will look for new names to take on the iconic roles considering this is a reimagining of the story. While the voices may not be the same, Disney has confirmed that the songs from the original film created by Elton John will be featured in the new movie. 

Disney has recently found a lot of success with their live action remakes, including this years Cinderella and Pete's Dragon which like Jungle Book were well received by fans and critics. The studio also already has their remake of Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson set to hit theaters early next year, which is sure to be a hit with such a big name attached to the lead. It seems the studio has really found their way with their live action remakes, it they'll most likely continue to do it as long as they're successful. With Lion King in the works, now its just a question of which film is getting its live action remake next?

So are you happy Disney is making a live action remake of Lion King? Would you like to see the original cast return? If not, who would you cast as the new voice for this iconic roles? Let us know below!

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Doug Liman Drops Out Of 'Gambit' To Direct The Revived 'Justice League Dark' For DC

Amongst all the talk of upcoming DC movies like Justice League, The Flash, and The Batman, many have already forgotten about the Justice League Dark movie. The projects has been in the pipe line for quite awhile, and unfortunately wasn't given much attention due to the studios sudden interest in rushing Suicide Squad to the big screen. Following Guillermo del Toro's (Pacific Rim) departure from the film it seemed as if Justice League Dark would never see the light of day, but surprisingly its been announced that it has once again gained traction with Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow) now set to direct the project. 

Variety reports that DC and Warner Bros. have no brought Liman on board to direct the project for a still unidentified release date. Liman had previously been attached to direct the Gambit film being worked on at Fox starring Channing Tatum, but he has now left that project in favor of Justice League Dark. Gambit has been struggling and lost its original director Rupert Wyatt and nearly lost Tatum, and it now now longer has a 2017 release date. 

While one comic book movie is certainly taking a huge hit because of this news, another one is now in a much better position then it was in a few months ago. Del Toro's script will apparently still serve as a base for the movie, yet he couldn't direct himself due to his crowded schedule of projects. Del Toro has a strong history with fantasy and horror movies, even having adapted the popular Hellboy series in the past. DC and WB have seemingly prioritized Justice League Dark now, more than likely following the success of Suicide Squad with audiences (Not with critics). 

Much like Suicide Squad, this project is a risk for the studio as it branches away from their more well known characters. The company will be releasing an animated movie based on the team in a few months which is probably meant to familiarize audiences with characters such as John Constantine, Deadman, Swamp Thing, Zatanna, and Etrigan the Demon. DC's introduction of magic and fantasy in their cinematic universe didn't go as smooth as one would've hoped with Enchantress in Suicide Squad, so we can only hope the studio figures out how to handle these characters. We'll likely be hearing some casting news soon and we can probably expect some big names, particularly the often rumored Colin Farrell in the lead of John Constantine. 

So are you excited for Justice League Dark? Are you happy to see DC branching out to different projects? How would you like to see cast in the movie? Let us know below!

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