This archive report was first published on 20 July 2019.
July 20, 2019, marks the 25th anniversary of the release of Disney's The Lion King, a film that has become a beloved classic around the world.
Produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures in 1994, The Lion King was the 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth animated film produced during the Disney Renaissance.
Here are 10 interesting facts about the film's production and success:
- In 1991, a team of animators from Disney traveled to Hell's Gate National Park in Kenya to research and draw inspiration for the film.
- The famous 'Hakuna Matata' phrase was added to the script after the team's trip to Kenya.
- Due to an earthquake in 1994, Disney Studios was forced to close temporarily, and a significant portion of the film was completed in the artists' homes.
- Wildlife expert Jim Fowler brought real animals to the studio to help the animators study their movements.
- The Lion King is the highest-grossing hand-drawn animated feature of all time, with over $986 million in box office revenue.
- The film is also the eighth highest-grossing animated feature, the 42nd highest-grossing film of all time, and the best-selling videotape of all time.
- The film went through several title changes before finally being named The Lion King.
- It took almost three years to animate the two-and-a-half-minute wildebeest stampede scene.
- The original final fight scene had Simba lose to Scar, and Scar eventually dying in a fire.
- A hyena researcher sued Disney for 'defamation of character' for the portrayal of the hyenas in the film.
