Mufasa: The Lion King, the prequel to The Lion King, will hit theaters on December 20.
Directed by Barry Jenkins, the film stars Aaron Pierre as young Mufasa and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as his brother, Taka, who eventually becomes Scar. Donald Glover and Beyoncé return as Simba and Nala, respectively, with Blue Ivy voicing young Nala.
The film tells the untold story of Mufasa’s rise from an orphaned cub to the wise and beloved king introduced in the 1994 classic. It explores his relationship with Taka, giving audiences a backstory for their sibling rivalry and the emotional complexities that shaped their fates.
In an exclusive interview with The Quintessential Gentleman, Aaron Pierre shared his excitement about diving deeper into Mufasa’s character.
“For me, one of the many things that really interested me about this prequel was getting a deeper understanding of Scar and getting a deeper understanding of Mufasa,” said Pierre. “He [Mufasa] wasn’t always this king; he wasn’t always self-assured. He was an orphan, he was an outsider, he was dismissed, he was curved.”
Harrison echoed this sentiment, drawing parallels between the film and his past work with Pierre, Genius: MLK/X. “It was also why we did MLK/X. It’s just like kind of journeying the icon and humanizing them, and reminding a new generation of their potential, their choices, their opportunities, and finding agency in their own lives,” he said.
Despite appearing together in major projects, Harrison and Pierre have yet to truly share significant on-screen moments. Both actors have expressed excitement about the possibility of working directly with one another in the future.
“Technically, we were in this movie [Mufasa] together, but it was all on Zoom, so we were never in the studio at the same time doing scene work,” Kelvin shared. “He shot his separately, I shot my scenes separately and then they just edited it together. Likewise, with MLK X, we were on different sets most of the time, except for one scene.”
Their relationship, however, extends far beyond co-stars. “We’ve been put together to be brothers and to be supportive of each other throughout this journey,” Kelvin continued. “As we navigate Hollywood, as we navigate coming of age as men turning 30 this year, and understanding what it means to be Black men in this time in our lives—whether in the UK or America—it feels like a much bigger purpose of our friendship more than it is like being collaborators as actors.”
While they haven’t yet had the chance to truly act opposite one another, Kelvin added, “One day, we will actually get to do some real scene work—like sit and actually act opposite each other—but I think God has a greater purpose for this.”
When discussing working with Jenkins—widely known for his Oscar-winning film Moonlight and NAACP Image Award-winning film If Beale Street Could Talk—Pierre expressed his admiration, saying he loves working with the great Barry Jenkins.
Pierre collaborated with Jenkins when he starred in Prime Video’s The Underground Railroad. “It’s been a really beautiful brotherhood, a really beautiful working relationship and collaboration, and he’s just so entirely generous with me in regard to imparting his knowledge, expertise, and guidance. So, I’m deeply grateful for that,” Pierre said.
Check out the full interview.
