Beyoncé To Voice Nala In Live Action Remake Of ‘The Lion King’

Beyoncé has been tapped to voice the character of Nala in the upcoming live action remake of “The Lion King.”

The “Halo” singer will be joining the star-studded ensemble, which includes Donald Glover as Simba, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar, Alfre Woodard as Sarabi and James Earl Jones as Mufasa. Jones was also the actor who voiced the same character in the hit 1994 Disney animated film of the same name.

Walt Disney Studios released a complete cast list via their official Twitter account, and it also features “Friends From College” star Keegan-Michael Key as Kamari and “2 Broke Girls” alum Eric Andre, who will play the role of Azizi. The official release date for the movie has also been confirmed, and it will take place on July 19, 2019.

Beyoncé has been in talks to play the role of Nala since September, after Disney announced that involvement of director John Favreau in the project. According to Harper’s Bazaar, the “Crazy In Love” singer will also be producing and singing some of the songs from the film’s official soundtrack.

According to People, “The Lion King” is expected to use performance-capture technology and computer-generated imagery to bring the characters to life. Songs from the original movie will also be featured in the remake. On top of “The Lion King,” Disney is also in talks to release a remake of “The Little Mermaid,” “Mulan” “Aladdin” and “Dumbo.”

Meanwhile, Beyoncé was previously in talks to play the role of Plumette in the live action remake of “Beauty and the Beast.” Unfortunately, the award-winning singer begged off from the role because it wasn’t considered a main character. “Beauty and the Beast” director Bill Condon told Yahoo Entertainment, “I even tried to get her into ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ but it wasn’t a big enough part.” The role was eventually given to Gugu Mbatha-Raw.

According to Glamour, Beyoncé was also considered for the role of Tiana in “The Princess and the Frog.” But her “Dreamgirls” co-star, Anika Noni Rose, was the one cast in the end.