Chiwetel Ejiofor Eyes The Role Of Scar In The New Lion King

Chiwetel Ejiofor

by James White |
Published on

Given that Chiwetel Ejiofor is listed as "in talks" for the role, by the time you read this he could already be recording his part or moving on to other things. But he's certainly been figuring out a deal to play the villainous Scar in Jon Favreau's new version of The Lion King.

He feels like the right choice for the well-spoken villain, able to bring charisma and gravitas to the part. He's joining a cast that already includes a returning James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Donald Glover playing Simba, Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner as Pumbaa and Timon and John Oliver providing the properly flustered voice performance as Zazu.

Favreau has been working on this one using similar technology to The Jungle Book, though obviously without the need to include a human this time. He brought an impressive sequence to this year's D23 event, though the movie itself won't be out until 2019.

Ejiofor has most recently worked on dramas Come Sunday and Mary Magdalene.

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