Billy Eichner And Seth Rogen Will Be Timon & Pumbaa In Disney's Live-Action The Lion King
Hakuna Matata!
Disney's 'reimagining' of The Lion King is coming along nicely.
The film has long had director Jon Favreau (The Jungle Book) in place, and earlier this year cast Donald Glover as Simba, and announced James Earl Jones was reprising his role as Mufasa. Meanwhile Beyonce has been linked to the role of Nala, though there's no confirmation on that front yet.
Now we can tick off another couple of key characters, as the new Timon and Pumbaa have been found: Billy Eichner (Billy on the Street, Parks & Rec) and Seth Rogen (Knocked Up, The 40-Year-Old Virgin).
It sounds like pretty shrewd casting from Favreau, with Rogen in particular having been the choice of many fans for the role of Pumbaa (though it would've been fun had James Franco been cast alongside him as Timon).
The characters were originally voiced by Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella, who played key roles in making the characters so beloved and turning Hakuna Matata into one of Disney's biggest hits. So no pressure there, then.
Disney has set the movie, which is being dubbed a live-action remake even though it's going to have no human characters and mostly CGI, for a July 19, 2019 release date. It's been scripted by Jeff Nathanson (Pirates of the Caribbean 5), and will blend the classic tunes from Elton John and Tim Rice with some new music.
What do you think of the casting of Rogen and Eichner? Let us know down in the comments.