10 Disney Supporting Stars That Need Their Own Movie
9. Rafiki
When the Lion King hit theatres, few were prepared for the adult themes that it delivered. A retelling of Shakespeare's Hamlet, the story of a young prince fighting to reclaim the throne from his usurping uncle was both grand in scale, and kept relatively child-friendly - although THAT stampede ruined the childhoods of many a theatre goer.
Rafiki is the king's spiritual advisor in many senses. While he is not as involved in the day to day politics as Zazu for example, he is revered by both the monarchy and the people. They all bow to him and show deference, begging the question, what did he do to gain this status in the kingdom?
As the Lion King had already displayed, audiences were more than capable of handling the themes being presented to them so the story of Rafiki becoming who he is would be a film that could very easily be enjoyed by all audiences. In particular, his spiritual awakening, teased in the main film, is fascinating.
Through Rafiki, Simba is introduced to a world of magic and of communing with the dead. Rafiki also shows this to him in a kind, safe way. What did he have to go through to understand these powers? Who did he lose? Where did he begin?
Rafiki is easily one of the more interesting characters in the Lion King - a spin off film would be very welcome.