Kimba the white lion vs lion king
One of the bigger selling points of The Lion King was that it was an original film, the comparisons to William Shakespeare's Hamlet notwithstanding. The Lion King entered production in 1989, following a string of successful adaptations in The Little Mermaid, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast. Unfortunately, the film was delayed due to budgeting issues and the tragic death of Tezuka, who succumbed to stomach cancer.
The film would have adapted the final half of the manga, which featured Kimba raising his two cubs.
KIMBA THE WHITE LION VS LION KING MOVIE
A movie adaptation of Jungle Emperor, titled Jungle Emperor Leo, was put into production in 1988.
KIMBA THE WHITE LION VS LION KING SERIES
The series was a hit in Japan, becoming an anime in the 1960s. RELATED: The Lion King Remake Waters Down It's Best Moments Chief among the obstacles standing in his way is the villainous Claw, a disfigured evil lion who wishes himself king. Tezuka, who had one point had been hired to produce a manga adaptation of Bambi for Japanese audiences, was himself inspired by Walt Disney works when creating Kimba. Kimba was about the eponymous white lion cub, who attempts to honor his fallen father's legacy and rule the jungle animals in peace and harmony.
The series was created by Osamu Tezuka, who also created Astro Boy. Kimba the White Lion, known in Japan as Jungle Emperor, was a manga that ran from 1950 to 1954. Let's look at the similarities between the two projects and Disney's response to the allegations. Then, his father appears to him in the clouds/moon and tells him that he knows that Simba can do it.Īlthough Disney filmmakers deny any influence from the movie “Kimba,” it is hard to say that this is all a coincidence.Although Disney's recent release of its live-action adaptation of the The Lion King has been a major financial success, the film is also reigniting a controversy from when the original debuted concerning whether or not the House of Mouse stole from Osamu Tezuka's Kimba the White Lion. “Coincidentally,” in “The Lion King,” Simba is also given the task to save his community, and he, too, believes that he is not capable of doing such a task. While thinking that he can’t do it, his father appears to him in the moon and convinces him that he has to go on this journey. Lastly, in the Japanese cartoon, Kimba needs to go on a dangerous journey to save a member of his community. Aside from the main characters having almost identical names-Kimba and Simba, an evil lion with an eye condition is also in both movies. Although this scene lasted a good couple seconds in “The Lion King”, it was a significant element in “Kimba.”Īnd then there’s more. Throughout “The Lion King” and “Kimba”, the visual of a lion standing atop Pride Rock is shown-both scenes mirroring each other perfectly.īoth of the main characters are also seen eating bugs to save their herbivore friends. The story lines do somewhat differ with Kimba being a Japanese cartoon exploring the relationship between humans and animals, but if anyone took a look at the visuals, the movie is fairly similar. “Kimba the White Lion” was a cartoon that aired in the 1960s by animator Osamu Tezuka. The other day, I came across a video explaining how similar “The Lion King” is to the movie “Kimba the White Lion.” Scared that my favorite childhood movie of all time was a knockoff, I decided to look further into the controversy. Out of all the Disney films, this movie is most definitely one of the most cherished and talked about. Kimba The White Lion VS The Lion King from Taylor James Johnson on Vimeo.įor over 20 years, the movie, “Lion King”, has been the childhood movie everyone is meant to see.